Understanding Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) in West Berkshire

Activity closed. Results published.

Background

Under the Equality Act 2010 (the Act), West Berkshire Council has a legal requirement to comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED). This means we must think about how our policies and decisions affect people who are protected under the Act. People who are protected under the Act have what's called protected characteristics, these are:

• age
• disability
• gender reassignment
• marriage and civil partnership
• pregnancy and maternity
• race
• religion or belief
• sex
• sexual orientation

Marriage and civil partnership are protected characteristics under the Act, but it's not covered by the PSED.

When we provide our services, we must think about the need to:

• Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and other conduct prohibited by the Act
• Advance equality of opportunity between people who share a protected characteristic and those who don't
• Foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and those who don't

To help us achieve this, the Council Strategy 2019-2023 includes a number of priorities for improvement around equality and diversity.

The Council Strategy 2023-2027 is currently being developed, as is our Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Framework (EDI). The EDI Framework will ensure that we meet the needs of the whole community by delivering services and initiatives to help make West Berkshire even more inclusive.

We want to make sure that the people of West Berkshire have an equal entitlement to high quality services, employment and opportunities for personal development, and that West Berkshire Council has a fair and inclusive organisational culture. Equal entitlement doesn't necessarily mean giving each individual or group of people the same resources or opportunities, it's about recognising that each person has different circumstances, and allocating the exact resources and opportunities needed to reach an equal outcome.

Why we want your views

To help develop an EDI Framework, we'd like to hear about your experiences of equality (or equity) and inequality (or inequity) in West Berkshire, and have commissioned The Equal Group to carry out a survey and engagement activities.

This will help us understand the specific issues that affect particular groups differently and/or disproportionately.

It's by hearing from local people that we can make the changes needed to move us forward towards equity and inclusivity. We'll also be gathering the experiences of partner organisations, council staff and voluntary and community groups.

How to take part

If you'd like to take part, please complete our survey by midnight on Sunday, 4 December 2022. It should take about 10 to 15 minutes

If you have any questions about the full version of the survey, please email The Equal Group at WestBerkshire@theequalgroup.com; for the shorter version email rcpteam@westberks.gov.uk

What happens next

Your feedback is used to develop a draft EDI Framework, which will be formally consulted on in spring 2023.

Other useful contacts

For questions relating to community EDI, please email: WestberksBCT@westberks.gov.uk.

For questions relating to employee EDI, please email: HREnquiries@westberks.gov.uk.

To make a complaint about West Berkshire Council relating to bullying, discrimination, harassment or victimisation, please report it through our webpage.

If you'd like to report a crime that involves prejudice on the basis of race, religion, sexual orientation, or other grounds, please contact Thames Valley Police.