Strategic Equality Plan 2022-2027

Policy

  • The Equality Act 2010 introduced a single Public Sector Equality Duty (The PSED) to replace existing race, disability and gender equality duties. The Act prohibits discrimination in employment, education and the provision of goods and services in respect of nine Protected Characteristics which are as follows:

    • Age
    • Disability
    • Gender reassignment
    • Marriage and civil partnership
    • Pregnancy and maternity
    • Race
    • Religion or belief
    • Sex
    • Sexual Orientation

    When we are thinking about how we advance equality of opportunities between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who don’t, we also need to:

    1. Remove or minimise disadvantages experienced by people due to their protected characteristics.
    2. Taking steps to meet the needs of people from protected groups where these are different from the needs of other people.
    3. Encouraging people with protected characteristics to participate in public life or in other activities where their participation is disproportionately low.

    The aim of the new equality duty is to ensure that equality is mainstreamed into our everyday work and that this in turn should result in more appropriately delivered services and outcomes taking into account individuals’ backgrounds. The duty builds on the previous duties in respect of gender, race and disability. It represents a significant shift in approach from a legal framework which relied on individual people making complaints of discrimination to a context where the public sector becomes a proactive agent of change.

    The government and the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) have made it clear that public bodies must mainstream equality in both their internal and external facing functions, and the duty provides a mechanism for tackling institutional discrimination in policies, practices and procedures.

    Coleg Sir Gar / Coleg Ceredigion is committed to these principles of mainstreaming equality and these legislative changes. We understand and believe that mainstreaming equality issues will ensure that we deliver our aims in a more meaningful way, which will reach all groups in our community more effectively.

    In April 2011 a Single Public Sector Equality Duty was implemented as part of the Equality Act 2010 putting in place a series of specific duties to underpin the general duty which we must follow.

    These are:

    • to publish equality objectives by 2 April 2014 reviewing them every 4 years;
    • to publish a statement setting out the steps that it has taken or intends to take in order to fulfil each objective and the timescale to achieve;
    • to monitor the progress and effectiveness of the steps taken;
    • to identify, seek out and where appropriate, publish information that can be used to gauge whether the general duty is being met;
    • to carry out and publish impact assessments showing how its current and proposed policies and practices affect the organisation’s ability to comply with the general duty;
    • on an annual basis, collect and publish certain employee data by reference to protected characteristics;
    • to promote employees’ understanding of the general and specific duties.

    • Respect
    • Unity
    • Professionalism

    Although our Action plan follows the Strategic Priorities of UWTSD we face diverse challenges in respect of equality and the general duty.

    These challenges are:

    • Data collection and monitoring of the impact.
    • Celebrating and developing our communities’ awareness and understanding.
    • Health and Wellbeing of our communities
    • To support making ‘Wales anti-racist by 2030’
    • Implementation of the ALN act.
    • The Wellbeing and future generations Act (2015)

    In preparing this Strategic Equality Action Plan - consultation will take place with:

    • Governing Body
    • Senior Leadership Team
    • Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee
    • College Operational Group
    • Unions (NEU, NASUWT, UCU, Unison)
    • Staff
    • Student Union

  • WE WILL:

    • Endeavour to collect all student and staff data on their protected characteristics by:
      • Collecting staff information at recruitment and onboarding and ask all staff to complete information on ‘my view’.
      • Encourage all students to complete information at enrollment and on prospect throughout the year.

    Which will then enable us to provide annual updates at all levels of the organisation on the following:

    • Demographics of the workforce to better understand the needs of our staff to put in place the right support and developments for staff.

      This needs to relate by protected characteristic to:

      • Contract type
      • Position
      • Accessing CPD
      • Reasons for leaving
      • Disciplinary and grievance

    • Demographic of student population to better understand the needs of our students to put in place the right support and developments for students.

      This needs to relate to:

      • Enrolment
      • Attendance
      • Attainment
      • Success
      • Disciplinary / Exclusions
      • Support services being offered.
    • Interrogate the information to better inform services and curriculum offerings including at faculty level within the PRB.
    • The ALN team to analyse completion data for learners with identified ALN and put in place appropriate professional development or opportunities to support improved completion.
    • Produce an annual equality report, which monitors action plan.

  • WE WILL:

    • Encourage representation on all levels of the organisation and the diverse community we represent this includes - having a fully diverse representation on Governance and Management groups across the college.
    • Ensure key themes are picked up within the tutorial programme for each year, and naturally occurring themes are engaged in during teaching sessions.
    • Ensure that any new policy/ or update has been put through an equality impact assessment.
    • Introduce targeted training on the Equality and Diversity themes of the year (for example Mental Health 22-23)
    • Become a Time to Talk College.
    • Become a disability confident employer.
    • Providing CPD for all staff on unconscious bias.
    • Sign Up to the Black Leadership Group and complete a Road map which supports Welsh Government target of Wales becoming anti-racist by 2030.
    • Complete an accessibility audit that will allow us to future proof our estate with particular concert to ALN.
    • Become a college of Sanctuary.

  • WE WILL:

    • Engage with the local community groups such as Black Leadership Group, Eyst, Race Equality Wales and bespoke groups within our local community group.
    • Develop the Student Code of Conduct and disciplinary policy to include bullying and harassment reporting and monitoring.
    • Ensure our Universal Learning Provision / Additional Learning Provision offer is available on the website and updated regularly.
    • Provide information to prospective staff on the excellent support services that are available to staff at the College.
    • Provide information for staff at induction on all of the wellbeing services available, and all support services available as an employee.
    • Listen to staff and learner feedback on themes as they are appearing.
    • Staff and students have a clear way of reporting any concerns around discrimination.

  • WE WILL:

    • Ensure data collection is accurate to be able to interrogate.
    • Act appropriately on the findings.

  • WE WILL:

    • Promote all equality, diversity and inclusion support and initiatives on the website and via social media, and internal platforms.
    • Create annual themes based on Equality and Diversity themes.
    • Offer CPD for all College staff to ensure ‘ALN is everyone’s responsibility.