Agenda Item No 3

Appendix 1

CLG Fire & Rescue Services National Equality & Diversity Strategy – Gap Analysis

Deliverables / Priority Outcomes / HFRS Status / Possible actions
Priority 1 – leadership & promoting Inclusion
1a / Develop an equality and diversity action plan for implementation of the Strategy, which ensures that equality and diversity are embedded in all parts of the organisation, is compatible with current equalities legislation, covers all strands of diversity and all Fire & Rescue Authority business (including employment practice, procurement and service delivery) and is reviewed at least annually. /
  • The culture of the Fire and Rescue Service is open and inclusive, evidenced, for example, by the results of employee and community surveys, data on recruitment, progression and retention, and qualitative information on Fire and Rescue Service policies, practices and procedures.
  • Everyone, from Members of Fire and Rescue Authorities, the Cabinet, the Community safety panel and Chief Fire Officers to the most junior member of staff, will be committed to equality, diversity and fairness and understand what is required of them, demonstrated, for example, through the outcomes of personal performance and identified through performance appraisal.
  • Equality and diversity considerations are routinely taken into account as part of the decision making process at all levels.
  • All our communities will have confidence in the leadership of the Fire and Rescue Service and its commitment to equality, diversity and fairness, indicated, for example, through a reduction in complaints, outcomes of community surveys and parity in performance on fire safety provision/community engagement across all sections of the community.
  • All employees will have confidence in the leadership of senior managers and their commitment to equality, diversity and fairness, evidenced, for example, through the outcomes of staff surveys.
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  • Have a framework for Equalities laying out overarching strategy and structure
  • CFO champions equality & Diversity within HFRS and chairs the HCC Diversity & Social Cohesion Board
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  • Carry out cultural audit and include findings and necessary follow-up action into E&D plan by end of financial year 2008/09
  • Have an explicit section within the Community Safety Plan on Equality & Diversity within HFRS

1b / Report to Members of the Fire & Rescue Authority on progress on equality and diversity at least annually. / Executive Member sits on the Equalities Board and reviews progress /
  • Annual report to Equalities Board on progress against Equality Schemes and progress against the national Strategy
  • Annual report to Community safety Panel
  • Annual report to Cabinet

1c / Review progress against statutory equality schemes as required by legislation. / Work with HCC on equality schemes will have explicit HFRS objectives
1d / Ensure all employees are aware of and understand the requirements of the Fire and Rescue Service Core Values. / New trainees do an induction program.
Managers through lite bite seminars /
  • Catch up needed for retained and those wholetime personnel who have not received Equality & Diversity induction.
  • Exploration of on-line training for all staff
  • Information/awareness to members of Community safety Panel with slides sent on to other county council members Feb/March 2009

1e / Ensure Members of Fire and Rescue Authorities and Chief Fire Officers undertake appropriate training in order to perform their role effectively in promoting equality, diversity and fairness and providing leadership to others. / SLG do not have an equalities risk box on papers presented / Introduce equalities box along with other risks on all papers presented to SLG
1f / Ensure that those with leadership responsibilities or potential have the opportunity and encouragement to develop their skills. /
  • ITOP open to all in band
  • No positive action in development
  • Leadership programme introduced
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  • Explore avenues for capturing every level of management.
  • Explore positive action in development

1g / Ensure resources for Human Resources and equality and diversity functions are sufficient to deliver fair and effective employment practices. / E & D unit is not adequately resourced to address all areas of the work. / Secondments/light duties personnel to deliver particular projects
1h / Ensure all managers across the organisation are aware of their role in promoting equality and diversity and of their obligation to ensure that all Fire and Rescue Authority plans, practices and procedures relating to any Fire and Rescue Service function undergo effective equality impact assessment. /
  • ITOP has E & D element which will increase peoples awareness and engagement.
  • Managers are trained in EIA.
  • Have not yet done functional EIA on CFS etc
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  • HCC wide review of EqIA’s nearing completion, HFRS is keen to fit in with the recommendations and training that emerges
  • Conduct EIAs on clusters of similar functional policies – dependent on relevance

1i / Ensure that equality and diversity issues are fully considered in the procurement of goods and services. / Contracts – HCC have an E & D statement / Need to monitor complaints/requests re clothing by gender.
1j / Fully consult with representative bodies with regards to all equality, diversity and fairness issues in order to develop a partnership approach. / Don’t have specific meetings with representative bodies other than via IAG /
  • Include Equality & Diversity as a standing item on level 1 meetings with rep bodies
  • Include Equality & Diversity as a standing item on all managerial meetings

1k / Individuals: Treat others with dignity and respect in accordance with the Core Values.
1l / Individuals: Undertake their role in promoting equality and diversity and ensure any practice or procedure they have responsibility for is effectively equality impact assessed.
1m / Individuals: Challenge and report inappropriate behaviours. / Very little whistle blowing, if any!
2a / Require a report to be made to Authority Members, at least annually, on the implementation of the Equality and Diversity Strategy and statutory equality schemes. /
  • Audit Commission holds Fire and Rescue Authorities accountable for progress against National Framework requirements.
  • All employees are held accountable for specific action to promote equality and diversity through annual appraisal
  • Fire and Rescue Authorities hold Chief Fire Officers accountable for progress against Equality Action Plan.
  • Public and stakeholders hold Fire and Rescue Authorities accountable for progress reported in the Integrated Risk Management Plans.
  • Employees hold Fire and Rescue Authorities accountable for progress in Equality Action Plan.
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  • Audit Commission holds HFRS to account via CPA. Doesn’t explicitly ask for progress against National Framework requirements – CAA will change this.
  • BEMM hold us accountable for progress on Race Equality.
  • There is an HFRS Internal Advisory Group which could be used more.
  • Public do through complaints
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  • Annual Report to CLG to also go to HCC Community Safety Panel
  • More explicit structural arrangement for the Internal Advisory Group and for that to be widely communicated throughout the service

2b / Report to Communities and Local Government annually by the end of September on improvements to service delivery and employment practice, including progress against the employment targets.
2c / Make evidence available to the public annually on improvements to service delivery and employment practice, including progress against the employment targets through its website. /
  • E & D plan has been published on our web pages along with our workforce profiles
  • CFO and DCFO both have equality & Diversity requirements within their performance contracts
/ Need to add in progress against recruitment targets.
2d / Ensure that all employees including Chief Fire Officers have annual performance appraisals with annual objectives including for equality and diversity. / PMDS is just being introduced throughout the service with all personnel to have an E&D element. / Spot check monitoring that Equality & Diversity requirements are being acted upon
2e / Demonstrate compliance with employment and equalities legislation and specifically the public duties for disability, gender and race and review progress in its Integrated Risk Management Plan. / Equalities Board currently reviews progress /
  • Service Delivery Team to review progress initially and the Community Safety Planning Group
  • SLG to receive an annual report of progress in April for the preceding year in anticipation of the September CLG report

2f / Ensure that bullying, harassment, unfair discrimination and unacceptable behaviours are dealt with fairly, quickly and transparently. / HCC guidance on timeliness, policy & reporting /
  • Promote discussions and debate about our culture
  • Promote buddy mentor scheme and mentors for newly appointed Crew & Watch Commanders
  • Formalise management mentoring scheme

2g / Seek regular peer review (at least once every three years). / . / CFO considering peer review for HCC HFRS will be part of it. / Agree timetable and process
2h / Individuals: Meet his or her equality and diversity objectives.
2i / Individuals: Understand and comply with legal requirements on age, disability, ethnicity, gender, religion or belief and sexual orientation.
3a / Ensure equality of service to all sections of the community. /
  • An informed, aware, listening, open and approachable Fire and Rescue Service
  • Reduction of fire incidents, deaths and injuries across all communities with emphasis on bringing comparable success rates within at risk and/or hard to reach communities.
  • Reduced malicious calls and attacks on firefighters
  • All communities value and engage with the Fire and Rescue Service
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  • EIA being done on CSP
  • We don’t currently report on death/injury frequency amongst all communities – IRS will help us to collect. Mosaic may help.
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  • Need to do EIA on service delivery by districts and functions
  • Would need to require reporting on these areas
  • Could map info requirements and request from Community Info unit

3b / Identify and take account of the needs of the full range of communities it serves. / Mosaic and FSec
Awaiting first reports using both / 2009/10 for first reports
3c / Assess the impact of all new policies, plans, procedures and practices to ensure effective service delivery to all communities, tailored to their needs. / FBU requires EIA on all new/revised policies
Awaiting outcome of HCC review /
  • Need to prioritise functions with high impact on communities eg CFS, Youth Engagement etc
  • Discuss with FBU

3d / Review all policies, plans, procedures and practices regularly. / Have 3 year review programme / Change the language from EqIAs on policies to EqIAs on what we do.
3e / In particular, ensure that the Integrated Risk Management Plan takes full account of the needs of local communities and that all aspects of the planning process have been effectively equality impact assessed. / Begun EIA on IRMP – focus groups include community minority stakeholders. / Planning & performance team will undertake EIA on all proposed initiatives which are agreed by SLG (as part of Strategic Thinking workshops)
3f / Implement procedures to ensure progress review for service delivery in its Integrated Risk Management Plan. / Service Action Plan (2008/09 and future plans) monitor progress against key items to ensure delivery of strategic aims and objectives outlined in the community safety plans. / Performance will be managed through the PB views and quarterly performance reporting structures to SLG and SDT – a need exists to highlight particular progress/problems with relatioin to hard to reach/high risk areas as opposed to geographical areas.
3g / Consistently communicate progress on service delivery to all local communities, including targeted communication. / We are currently doing a mapping exercise of our communities and if we are engaging with them.
Equality & Diversity plan lists progress against all six equality strands. /
  • As part of new development of PB views we have web publishing tool to allow us to make known performance at all levels
  • IRS mapping of our communities will feed into the ethnicity data we already have.

3h / Ensure complaints are dealt with quickly, fairly and transparently. / Complaints Process is in place – adhere to HCC standards and reported corporately
3i / Work with partner agencies and community advocates within local communities to improve/create new ways of communicating with community groups. /
  • MigrantWorkersMulti-agency forum
  • Have started discussions with a gay friendly pub re LGBT
  • Have started with Sikh community in Hitchin
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  • Allocate explicit service wide leadership responsibility for community engagement
  • Develop links with Polish Association in Hatfield
  • Follow up with Load of Hay & other LGBT networks
  • Pursue Guidepost Trust – Watford
  • Should be part of District Plans

3j / Monitor and take action on community perceptions and satisfaction identified through surveys, complaints procedures etc. / Starting to do this with ORS
Continue to monitor through the CLG required annual place survey. We will also be monitoring information within PB views around numbers of complaints and compliments – reported to SLG
External communications strategy working group set up to identify how to challenge negative/incorrect perceptions held about the service by the public and improve accessibility to services / Implement random after the incidents survey
3k / Provide all employees with appropriate training and development to build skills and confidence in delivering a service which is effective in meeting the needs of all local communities and is in accordance with legal requirements. / Suite of Equality & Diversity Training appropriate to role has been identified, so far implementation has included:
  • ½ day induction for all new staff, except retained
  • Distance learning workbook has been piloted
  • EqIA training for Managers
  • LGBT Awareness Conference
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  • Continue with implementation
  • Plan cradle to grave approach
  • Map out a programme of what is considered needed for crew and watch commanders

3l / Communicate clearly and consistently with staff to raise awareness and understanding of local community issues and the actions needed to address them. /
  • Migrant Workers Seminar
  • Islamic Awareness courses
/ Need to do wider religious and community awareness and mental health
3m / Individuals: Access training appropriate to their role to enable them to deliver services effectively.
3n / Individuals: Behave appropriately and respectfully to members of the public and colleagues.
4a / Undertake awareness campaigns and positive action to support and encourage applications from currently under-represented groups. /
  • Improved diversity of applicants and recruits
  • Greater equality in promotion and retention for employees across all backgrounds
  • Progression based on merit, including a requirement for applicants to demonstrate evidence of promoting equality.
  • Increase in numbers of employees returning to work after maternity leave.
  • Comparable retention rates for employees across all backgrounds (age, ethnicity, disability, gender, religion and sexual orientation)
  • Reduced bullying and harassment (based on employee surveys) and related sickness absence.
  • All aspects of the workplace support all employees to work to the best of their ability.
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  • Annual Positive action events
  • Detailed information about positive action with expressions of interest form is on our web pages
  • A positive action DVD is being produced with 3 other services in the East of England
/ Produce an on-going programme of events including open days which includes:
  • Integrate positive action into firefighter work with communities
  • Develop a programme of district based events
  • Poster campaign across the county

4b / Use national processes for recruitment, development and promotion of staff. / Use POEST
4c / Review and equality impact assess employment policies, practices and procedures to ensure they are robust, fair and effective, using monitoring data including information derived from exit interviews. /
  • Everyone receives a leavers questionnaire and the opportunity for an exit interview but not always taken up, this work forms part of the retention review
  • ITOPs and ADC processes are applied to all promotions and all have areas of assessment on Equality & Diversity
  • EqIA have been applied to the Recruitment process annually and improvements made as a consequence
/ HR Manager to circulate manager communication about the important of completing the Leavers Questionnaire
HR teams will monitor regularly
4d / Asses all aspects of the working environment (including equipment, travel, training, clothing, facilities, food etc) to ensure all employees receive the support and tailored resources necessary to work to the best of their ability. / Have started Facilities Review emerging as an HFRS objective from the Gender Equality Scheme / Could do review of other areas eg. Tech Services – clothing review
4e / Where necessary, Fire and Rescue Authorities will undertake equal pay audits as required by the Equal Pay Act and take steps to ensure staff are paid appropriately for undertaking work of equal value. / A small Pay audit was conducted in Fire Safety Enforcement – no plans to extend that throughout the service
4f / Carry out annual individual performance reviews based on the relevant role maps for all employees (up to and including Chief Fire Officers), including equality and diversity objectives, to provide evidence of fair progression. / PMDS introduced at MD seminar – roll out programme to be completed by April 09, with training in place to support it.
4g / Provide all employees with training and development on equality, diversity and fairness issues including those relating to harassment, bullying, unfair discrimination and unacceptable behaviours. /
  • Induction to firefighters and new support staff
  • EIA training
  • Distance learning workbook
  • Islamic Awareness
  • LGBT Awareness Conference
  • ADC process assess candidates re Equality & Diversity
  • Ask the Chief
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  • Aspire training for supervisory level via college being introduced
  • Checking out distance learning/e-learning

4h / Provide training for all managers, and where necessary Fire and Rescue Authority members, on handling grievances and disciplinary cases and on tackling bullying, harassment, unfair discrimination and unacceptable behaviours. / HCC provide these courses / Cultural Audit may provide a direction for what follow-up to Fairness at Work courses are needed.
4i / Communicate regularly with employees to raise awareness and understanding of workforce equality and diversity issues for the Fire and Rescue Authority and the actions needed to address them. /
  • Communicate via In Focus on positive action
  • Preparing Good Practice Guide on Dyslexia
  • Disability Equality update to MD seminar
  • Disability communications guide distributed to all stations and offices
  • Reasonable adjustment seminar to case conference staff
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  • Introduce a rolling programme of communication via In Focus
  • Include Equality & Diversity in the programme of engagement with middle managers via middle managers meetings and the MD seminar
  • Include equality & Diversity as a subject in the programme of visits to watches by Principal Officers
  • Commission and equality & Diversity electronic newsletter.

4j / Individuals: Engage constructively with managers and colleagues in undertaking the annual performance review process.
4k / Individuals: Challenge and report bullying, harassment, unfair discrimination and unacceptable behaviours.
5a / Collect and submit to Communities and Local Government qualitative and quantitative evidence of improvements to service delivery for inclusion in the annual Equality and Diversity Report for the Fire and Rescue Service. /
  • Greater efficiency and effectiveness through sound evidence and dissemination of good practice.
  • Public, stakeholders and employees informed and involved at local, regional and national levels.
/ Annual report to CLG will need to be built into work programme – this work should also form the basis of reports to the Community safety Panel and to SLG and the equalities Board.
5b / Collect and submit to Communities and Local Government evidence of improvements to employment practice in relation to all staff, including progress against the employment targets and in respect of all other roles where monitoring is required, for all diversity strands for inclusion in the annual Equality and Diversity Report.
5c / Review, monitor and evaluate policies, practices, plans and procedures to assess their impact on equality, diversity and fairness (i.e. undertake robust equality impact assessment) / HCC wide review of EqIA process / We will implement HCC recommendations for this process which is likely to include conduct impact assessments on what we do.
5d / Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of processes and procedures for dealing with bullying, harassment, unfair discrimination and unacceptable behaviours. / We will monitor the number of cases and their outcomes and include within PB Views
5e / Undertake employee and community surveys, in partnership with representative bodies, to measure perceptions of the Fire and Rescue Service as an employer and service provider and to assess the level of effective engagement with employee and community representatives. / ORS focus groups
County Council staff satisfaction survey / Planning Cultural Audit
5f / Ensure that the provisions for collection and storage of personal information are secure and that the organisational culture encourages and supports members of staff to disclose personal diversity data. / Secured by HCC. Organisational culture not particularly encouraging in HFRS
5g / Recognise and celebrate local and national achievements. /
  • Doing more – articles in fire magazine
  • Equality & Diversity Plan acknowledges work done to date
  • FRS national awards
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  • Need to blow our own trumpet more
  • We plan to introduce a service wide recognition scheme

5h / Work with local, regional and national partners to promote and share good practice. / Work well with regional equalities colleagues and with HCC practitioners
5i / Communicate clearly and consistently with employees to raise their awareness, including on the reasons for action on issues of equality and diversity, on progress made and of successes. / Use In Focus for articles on positive action and LGBT Idaho Day / Will write to community groups drawing their attention to E & D plan.
5j / Individuals: Draw attention to potential good practice.
5k / Individuals: Seek support and advice as needed to deal with equality and diversity issues in their day to day work.
5l / Individuals: Complete frankly and return promptly workforce monitoring and employee survey questionnaires.

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