Equality Impact Assessment

Toolkit Guidance

Produced by:

Heather Johnson, Equalities Team

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Last updated: March 2009

1.What you need to know before starting an EIA

Why do we do Equality Impact Assessments (EIAs)?

We are required to carry out EIAs by law; the Race Relation Amendment Act, Disability Equality Duty and Gender Equality Duty has carrying out EIAs as a specific duty. The Equality Framework for Local Government; it used to be called the Equality Standard, also requires us to carry out EIAs.

Have there been any legal cases regarding EIAs?

Yes, more court cases are happening involving EIAs. For example, in July 2008 Southall Black Sisters won a case against Ealing Council who had cut funding for its services for BME women experiencing domestic violence. Ealing Council was charged with failing to carry out a full and proper equality impact assessment and also misinterpreting the race equality legislation.

Do inspections look at EIAs?

Yes, most inspections look at what EIAs we have done. For example the Corporate Performance Assessment (CPA, soon to be Corporate Area Assessment CAA), social services inspection (CSCI), Audit Commission Inspections and Housing Inspectorate. The annual Use of Resources inspection has EIAs as one of it’s Key Lines of Enquiry.

Who do EIAs cover?

All six equality strands – race, gender, disability, age, sexual orientation and religion and belief.

What is the aim of an EIA?

The aim of an EIA is to identify any discrimination against, or adverse impact on, any of the six strands. This may be due to the policy/procedure/strategy etc, or the way in which it is delivered. The discrimination or adverse impact may have been entirely unintentional but you still need to address it.

What do EIAs cover?

Council employment (EIAs mainly done by HR), council services and our procurement function i.e. buying goods or services from other organisations or companies.

When do I need to do an EIA?

Technically we need to carry out EIAs when making changes to, or introducing new, services, policies, procedures, working practises, projects, strategies and so on. This includes both council services and council functions, such as complaints procedures, procurement, methods of customer contact and so on. To make this more manageable Directorate Management Teams identify a list of priority EIAs for their directorate each year. These are the EIAs that we commit to completing and go through the various inspections. Services also need to carry out other EIAs, apart from the priority ones, as they change or review aspects of their service. Again these can be prioritised and are up to individual services or departments to decide what they are going to EIA. The idea is that over the years we will gradually EIA all aspects of the council. See the EIA Prioritising Template on the intranet to help you decide if you need to do an EIA.

Who will see my EIA?

The Equalities Team, Audit Commission, Inspectors, Equality Framework Peer Reviewers and the public. However, generally we won’t make the whole EIA public – just the bit that explains what you are EIAing (in section 1) and the summary in section 5. We may need to make the whole EIA public if a) a member of the public specifically asks to see the EIA or b) if we were legally challenged on something where an EIA was done.

What do I do with my completed EIA?

  1. E-mail it to Heather Johnson, Equalities Officer.
  2. Get it signed off by your DMT (so they agree the actions etc).
  3. Put the actions from the improvement plan into your service or directorate plan.
  4. Review and update the EIA when something changes; when you complete an action; or, at least, annually.

Training and Support

EIA training is available from the Equalities Team – contact Heather Johnson, Equalities Officer, to find out when the next training is or to arrange a session for your team.

Once you have had the initial training and are doing your EIA one-to-one support sessions are available, again from the Equalities Team, if you need them. If you are unsure of how to proceed with your EIA, or want to check you are on the right track e-mail your EIA to Heather Johnson. Some written comments via e-mail may help you or a one-to-one session might be needed. Either way, don’t struggle on your own.

There are also some completed EIAs on the intranet that other services have done. (see Useful Information section at the end of this toolkit).

  1. How - Planning your Impact Assessment.

Name of service area / function:

Lead officer for this EIA: Include job title so if this person leaves the link is not lost.

Name:

Phone Number:

Job Title:

Describe the service area / function: This bit will be made public therefore you need to describe your service (or whatever it is you’re EIAing) in a clear and easy to understand way. Don’t use jargon or technical terms, or, if you have to, explain what they mean.

Date of EIA: (or review date)

EIA signed off by: e.g. DMT, CMT, Partnership Board etc.

2. Issues - identifying the issues and finding evidence.

Think about the impact of your service / function on the 6 strands:
  • minority ethnic people (including Gypsies and Travellers)
/
  • people from different religions or of no religion

  • women, men and transgendered people
/
  • gay, lesbian or bisexual people

  • disabled people
/
  • older people and younger people

Think about and list the things you already do (positives), things you don’t do (gaps) and things that might cause people from the 6 strands a problem (issues). What evidence are you using to support your answers? You might look to:
  • local, national or regional research or data
/
  • complaints or customer comments

  • results of surveys (yours or others if relevant)
/
  • comments or feedback from frontline staff

  • articles in local or national media
/
  • equalities legislation

  • previous consultation or focus groups
/
  • guidance on the intranet

  • issues identified in government policy
/
  • profile of York

  • existing service business plans
/
  • satisfaction or service take-up data

When looking at your data and evidence ask yourself:
  • Are there lower participation rates for some groups in accessing my service?
  • Are there lower success rates in selection processes in the areas of employment, benefits, services etc for some groups?
  • Does the eligibility criteria disadvantage certain groups, even unintentionally?
  • Is access (physical or communicative) denied to or harder for some groups?
  • Does one group experiences poorer quality of treatment compared to another?
  • Will the proposed change(s) have a positive impact on the 6 strands?
  • Does the proposed change go against any of our legal equalities duties?
  • Are the services I procure/commission accessible and inclusive? How do I know this?

List all the issues:(copy and paste the titles below for each separate issue)

Issue:

Evidence to support this:

Which of the 6 strands does this issue affect?

3.Consultation - Get stakeholder/customer feedback on your service.

Before you consult

think… Do you already know the answer to the question? Have you or someone else asked it before? If so, why ask it again? Act on the information you have.

Use the ‘Perspectives: How to make Consultation Accessible and Inclusive’ guide on the intranet (see the Useful Information section) to identify:

  • Who to consult with
  • Your method(s) of consultation
  • How to make your consultation accessible
  • How to use the results
  • How to feedback to consultees

Consultation. Who did you consult? How did you consult them? What did you find out?

4.Actions - Develop an improvement plan.

What actions are you going to take to address the issues identified? Add these actions to your service/directorate plan. /

By when?

Add more rows as needed

5.Summary- Summarise the key issues and actions (this bit will be made public).

Please summarise the key issues that you have identified (add more if you wish). / 1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Please summarise the key actions that you have identified (add more if you wish). / 1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Well Done! You’ve finished your EIA.
What to do now…
  1. E-mail it to Heather Johnson, (Equalities Officer), for comments.
  2. Take it to your DMT (or wherever you get things agreed/signed off).
  3. Put the actions into your service/directorate plan (or any other plans/strategies as relevant).
  4. Review it if you make any further changes, as you complete actions or, at least, annually.


Thank you for your time
and commitment.

Useful Information

All this information, and more, can be found in the Equalities Folder on the intranet – council / policies, standards and procedures / equalities.

  • Making Connections: How to make Communication Accessible and Inclusive - information on translation, interpretation, large print, audio, Easy Read, language and etiquette, building access for meetings, Language Line and so on.
  • Perspectives: How to make Consultation Accessible and Inclusive.
  • Equality Profiling Questions - Lists the ethnicity categories to use, gives a definition of disability, advises on how to ask about sexual orientation or religion and belief.
  • Equality Profile of York - Check the profile information and compare it to the profile of your consultation recipients and respondents it see if your consultation is inclusive.
  • Community Groups Database - Need to consult with disadvantaged groups? This database has contacts for you to do so – follow the instructions on the first page of the database.
  • Accessible venues in York City Centre - Need a meeting room that’s wheelchair accessible or has a hearing loop? Check this list for some venue suggestions.
  • Equalities and Human Rights Legislation - Summaries of all the relevant legislation and where to find out more.
  • Equality Issues Guide – find out what the issues might be for your service and see if the suggested solutions help you.
  • Main Issues for the 6 Strands – Increase your awareness of key issues and see if they are relevant to your EIA.
  • Cultural Awareness Guide – Information on different religions, beliefs, and ethnicities.
  • Example EIAs – see what other services have done.

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