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BACKGROUND
The Community Learning MK – Adult Learning mission is to provide excellent learning opportunities to adults and young people who live in Milton Keynes which support them to achieve their full potential.
This mission is underpinned by the following principles:
- All education regardless of its recreational, social or vocational nature is life enhancing
- Everyone should have access to learning opportunities which match their needs and aspirations and which promote equality and diversity
- Partnership working is essential to promote the value of learning and to provide progression pathways
- Everyone is different Everyone isextraordinary
Policy
The team’s policy is to support the council’s corporate commitment to equal opportunities, which is outlined in the Comprehensive Equality Policy, and the Corporate Equality Action Plan and Schemes that relate to it, particularly the:
- Race Equality Scheme
- Disability Equality Scheme
- Gender Equality Scheme
- Religion/Faith
- Age
- Sexual orientation
The council’s overarching commitment to equalities is captured in its Comprehensive Equality Policy which is summarised at the end of this document.The complete policy and related action plan and schemesare available at
In order to demonstrate how this applies to Community Learning MK there are guidelines below on how the commitment to equality and diversity are delivered.
Guidelines
Adult Learning
The intention is to provide an inclusive service, as stated in the mission statement. This means that the service aims to meet the range of needs and aspirations of the community as a whole as well as the needs and aspirations of individuals.
Staff responsibility
The service recognises that ensuring that there is equality of opportunity, and therefore a truly inclusive service, is a responsibility of everyone in the team.
Strategy
The service has a Single Equality Scheme (SES), please see Annex 1, whichprovides a comprehensive equalities agenda for the service and the basis for curriculum planning. It reflects the service’s commitment to equalities and diversity, the Council’s overarching equalities objectivesand the council’s corporate equalities scheme. The SES also reflects good practice found elsewhere, and in particular has taken note of theSkills Funding Agency (SFA)and Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (DBIS)single equality schemes, and Ofsted equalities guidance and checklist.
The SES recognises that a very wide range of circumstances may disadvantage people, and the role of the service is to make the provision and support necessary to enable all members of the community to have an equitable opportunity to learn and develop. It also recognises that diversity is a positive characteristic of the local community and services within it, and the strategy aims to build on that.
To target provision, the following issues are particularly addressed:
- Age
- Gender
Disability and/or learning difficulty
Ethnic origin and first language
Educational achievement and/or levels of literacy and numeracy
- Other socio-economic factors
Monitoring
Service data is monitored to measure whether:
- Existing provision reflects the community population and needs
- Support arrangements are meeting targeted groups
- Staffing represents the local community
- There are additional needs for the future
Data is also included in the SAR and other strategic planning documents. Plans are made to ensure that where there is under representation or evidence of particular need in the community, targeted activity is planned.
Training and development
Staff development is planned and delivered to update staff on equality of opportunity issues. The tutor handbook, which all tutors access annually, provides information on equal opportunities and raises tutors’ awareness of the importance of providing an inclusive learning environment, with details of how to find extra help.
Support for different groups to ensure that each individual has the support they require
There are various support mechanisms for different groups of learners or potential learners as well as a range of direct provision advertised in the course brochure.
Milton Keynes Council’s Comprehensive Equality Policy and Action Plan
The council will:
Deliver equitable services by:
- Assessing the impact of our policies, projects and plans and making reasonable adjustments
- Removing barriers, making services accessible to local people and communities
- Improving engagement with local people and stakeholders
Shape the development of the Borough by:
- Understanding the needs and preferences of local people
- Advancing equality of opportunity for individuals and families
- Fostering good community relations, where everyone is treated with respect
Build a diverse workforce and an equipped council membership by:
- Adopting policies and practices that make best use of the differing skills and talents of individuals and create a harassment free environment
- Ensuring the council workforce is proportionately reflective of the ever changing community and compares well with other councils
- Creating tools and products that support members to have due regard to equality
The Council is committed to promoting equality of opportunity, good community relations, and to tackling all forms of discrimination in Milton Keynes through the Council’s roles as a service provider and commissioner, employer and community leader. The Council will work with our partners in the private, public and community sectors to achieve our objectives. We believe that the diversity of Milton Keynes is one of our greatest assets and should be celebrated and valued.
The complete policy and related action plan and schemesare available at
Annex 1
Equal Opportunities and Promoting Equality and Diversity Policy
Community Learning MK
Single Equality Scheme
Background
The Community Learning MK mission is to provide excellent learning opportunities to adults and young people who live in Milton Keynes which support them to achieve their full potential.
This mission is underpinned by the following principles:
- All education regardless of its recreational, social or vocational nature is life enhancing
- Everyone should have access to learning opportunities which match their needs and aspirations and which promote equality and diversity
- Partnership working is essential to promote the value of learning and to provide progression pathways
- Everyone is different Everyone isextraordinary
Policy
The CLMKpolicy supports the Council’s corporate commitment to equal opportunities (outlined in the Comprehensive Equality Scheme 2012-2016, available at and its Equality Vision:
The policy provides a comprehensive equalities agenda for the service and the basis for curriculum planning.
It recognises that a very wide range of circumstances may disadvantage people, and the role of the service is to make the provision and support necessary to enable all members of the community to have an equitable opportunity to learn and develop. It also recognises that diversity is a positive characteristic of the local community and services within it, and the strategy aims to build on that.
The policy is an attempt to ensure that the service is inclusive and recognises potential barriers, provides supporting mechanisms, and identifies ways of celebrating diversity and monitoring provision to measure effect and design future provision.
Community Learning MK is committed to meeting the requirements of the Equality Act 2010 in all nine protected characteristics outlined in the Act.
- age
disability
- gender reassignment (including those in transition)
- marriage and civil partnership
- pregnancy and maternity
- race
- religion or belief and non-religious
- sex
- sexual orientation
Equality and Diversity overview
CLMK policy is to support the Council’s corporate commitment to equal opportunities proactively by having a team policy and guidelines, strategy and practical arrangements in place, to ensure CLMK provides an inclusive service that meets the needs and aspirations of the community and individual learners.
Staff are encouraged to participate in national equalities events and projects.
Service data is monitored to measure whether:
- Existing provision reflects the community population and needs
- Support arrangements are meeting targeted groups
- Staffing represents the local community
- There are additional needs for the future
Data is also included in the SAR and other strategic planning documents. Plans are made to ensure that where there is under-representation or evidence of particular need in the community, targeted activity is planned.
Staff development is planned and delivered to staff to update them on equality of opportunity issues. The tutor handbook, which all tutors receive annually, provides information on equal opportunities and raises tutors’ awareness of the importance of providing an inclusive learning environment, with details of how to find extra help.
There are various support mechanisms for different groups of learners or potential learners as well as a range of direct provision advertised in the course brochure, delivered through the Community Skills Development team. The details are below.
Learners with disabilities and/or learning difficulties
CLMK offers specially designed courses for groups of learners if commissioned to do so because a partner has identified a particular need. Many of these courses are delivered with embedded basic skills of communication and numeracy, and others have an engagement or employability focus.
In addition to this,a wide range of learners enrol on courses across the service. These learners can be supported in a range of ways, including assessment of needs (e.g. dyslexia) and additional learning support through staff, equipment and modified exam arrangements. Additional support is advertised in course brochures, on the enrolment form and through specific leaflets (e.g. Accessible ACE). The aim is to ensure that all learners who require support identify their needs in advance. However, in practice, learners often do not identify they have a need or they do not realise they have a need until part way through the course. Therefore tutors and other staff are made aware of how to identify and refer learners with support needs. The Learning Support Facilitator co-ordinates arrangements for learning support.
Physical access for those with mobility difficulties is identified through access audits and centres used are now nearly all accessible to mobility impaired learners and staff. The exception is where there are specialist subject rooms which would not otherwise be available. There is liaison with providers of external venues to ensure that access issues are attended to.
People from black and minority ethnic (BME) communities, and learners whose first language is not English
CLMK provides a range of courses for learners whose first language is not English. There is a range of ESOL courses at different levels. Some of these courses are taught by bilingual tutors and bilingual volunteers are also available to support learners who would benefit from such language support at the initial phase of their learning. Tutors across the service are able to refer learners to the ESOL or English department if a learner may need language support.
People with low levels of literacy and numeracy and/or low educational achievements
CLMK offers a wide range of literacy and numeracy classes in locations across the borough to help adults to develop literacy and numeracy skills at the appropriate level for each learner up to GCSE level.
Learners on other courses across CLMK who require support with literacy or numeracy, for whatever reason can be referred to the Learning Support Facilitator who will arrange for an assessment to be carried out and relevant support organised. This may include dyslexia assessment.
A range of Family English, Maths and Language (FEML) courses and Wider Family Learning courses are delivered to meet the specific needs of families. FEML courses are delivered in close partnership with schools and children’s centres to help parents understand how their children are being taught, how to support their children’s learning and how to improve their own literacy, language and numeracy skills. Provision is targeted towards schools in areas where there are low levels of skills in the community and/or schools in new areas of Milton Keynes where there is neither a strong community identity nor a community relationship with the school. Wider Family Learning workshops and courses are aimed at family groups, for example ‘Bring Your Dad’ or parents/carers and under 10s, and encourage families to learn new skills together.
There is a wide range of courses targeted at people in communities where there are known low levels of educational achievement. Some provision is also delivered through partnership arrangements.
Age related learning provision
There are courses targeted at various groups by age. Wider Family Learning is described above and is aimed at encouraging whole families to participate in and benefit from learning and can include grandparents.
There are a number of courses targeted at particular 16-18 year olds, for example, those in the NEET group e.g. the Reaching Out programmes run in partnership with the Youth Service, and Traineeships. Other courses are chosen as they are particularly attractive to this age group, though not designed exclusively for young adults.
There are a number of courses that prove highly valued by older learners, for example, some day-time arts courses. Courses known to be popular with older learners are offered in the day as far as possible as that is the preferred time. Learners aged over 65yrs attending Community Learning fee paying provision pay fees reduced by 20%. Learners who receive pension guarantee credit can attend free when the minimum number of fee paying learners has been reached.
Gender related provision and support
Courses are generally intended to be available equally to men and women, and every attempt is made to ensure that neither the curriculum nor the delivery details would discriminate or hinder someone from participating fully. However, it is recognised that some men and women, particularly from some communities do not participate in mixed learning. Therefore CLMK runs a small number of courses targeted at either men or women, where it is clear that there are specific reasons to do so. For example, there may be women only swimming classes, courses for women returning to the labour market, and for women from certain minority ethnic communities, and wider family learning courses for fathers and children.
Provision and support for people who may be disadvantaged
CLMK recognises that people may be disadvantaged by a number of factors not addressed above. These include:
- Single parenthood (which may result in childcare difficulties)
- Being in care/leaving care
- Being a carer
- Financial hardship
- Being an asylum seeker
- Poor access to transport
In addition some people may suffer from disadvantage as a result of the attitudes of others. As well as the above groups, people’s sexual orientation and/or religion or beliefcan be the cause of prejudice.
CLMK takes a proactive approach to combating prejudice through training and positive role models. Some people face a combination of factors that make participation in learning less easy. Therefore some courses are targeted specifically at these groups or in areas where there are concentrations of people facing disadvantage.
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Action Plan 2014/15
The action plan that follows is based on the analysis of learner data, local community needs and progress to date (and links in to discussions held by CLMK and partners.)
The work will focus on three key elements:
- Gathering and analysing information, and monitoring progress
- Reviewing and developing policies and practice to support continuous improvement
- Addressing staffing issues
Area of action / Actions / Who and when / Progress update
Sept 2014
Actions to be taken
/Who
/ Outcome (What will be achieved and by when)Gathering and analysing information, and monitoring progress / Review data termly as Improvement Plan is updated and act on findings.
Data will be monitored at least by:
- gender
- age
- ethnicity
- LDD
Analyse the links between community profile and equalities data and ensure that action is built in to curriculum planning / CG/CLMT / Annual review will provide in depth analysis
Investigate further data about previous qualifications / CG/CLMT / Data is collected on EBS and is used to inform skills checks and advice and guidance on enrolment.
Reviewing and developing policies and practice to support continuous improvement / Review ACE policies and guidelines through AMT / CG/CLMT / Ongoing reviews via AMT will identify changes to policy needed or changes to practices that need to be reflected in the documents. / Completed and on-going.
Promote services to learners with particular needs, targeting those groups identified in termly monitoring as needing additional provision, and linking to accreditation and national standards as far as possible / CLMT / Ongoing but termly SAR update and learner number monitoring will identify any changes needed / Project work focused on preventing exclusion by disadvantaged groups include:
Neighbourhood Employment Programme (NEP)
MIND workshops via NEP
Employment and Training co-ordinator Children Centres
Employment and Training co-ordinator Strengthening Families
Macintyre provision
Neighbourhood Learning in Deprived Communities
16-18 Promoting Apprenticeships to NEETs
Sub-contracting arrangements with the third sector
Addressing staffing issues / Review sufficiency of staff training and information in tutor handbook / CLMT / CPD provision based on needs analysis is in place. By Dec 14
Provide staff development on equalities issues as part of annual programme for tutors / CLMT / Staff with an increased understanding of equalities
Use Excellence Gateway to find out what other providers do to share best practice.
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