Proforma: Directorate Equality Plan Timescale I

Proforma: Directorate Equality Plan April 2006-March 2007

Directorate: Adult Social Care

Director: Jill Stannard

Equality Lead Officer: Sheila Don

Deputy Equality Lead Officer: Mark Hastings

The Directorate Equality Plan shows how each directorate is feeding into the Corporate Equality Implementation Strategy. The structure of the plan follows the Corporate Equality Implementation Strategy, which has one top priority and seven key priorities.

Top priority: Equality Impact Assessments

The goal for the Council is that all functions and policies relating to objectives in the Council Plan will be Equality Impact Assessed. This will ensure that the Council’s end of year performance against generic targets is fully inclusive in regard to: gender, age, sexual orientation, ethnicity, faith and disability.

Council theme and objective and BVPI
N/A if function is not part of the Council Plan or a BVPI objective / Function / Priority
High
Medium / Policies within the function / Lead officer / Proposed completion
date / Method of monitoring
Improving the Health and Wellbeing of Adults / Goal: Increase older people supported to live in their own home or community from 80 per 1000 in 2006 to 90 per 1000 in 2008. / Shelagh James
Sheila Don
Peter Woodhouse / EIA During 2006
Dec 2006
EIA During 2006 / Making use of Performance Indicators and data from Care Plans
User Survey, Focus Groups and Provider Consultation.
Fair Access to Care Policy
Charging Policy
Older Adults Strategy
Goal: Begin roll out of Individualised Budgets from April 2008 / Tom Hendrie
Graham Hodkinson / EIA by July 2006
EIA During 2006 / Direct Payment Stats and data from Care Plans
Data from care Plans and “In control” pilot
Direct Payments Policy
Pilot Individualised Budget Schemes
Goal: Implement Carers’ Strategy to improve services and choice for carers. / Andy Woods / EIA During 2006 / Monitored by User feedback and consultation with Carers themselves and with key partner organisations in the voluntary, private and health sector
Draft Carers’ Strategy
Improving the Health and Wellbeing of Adults
Improve work opportunities for Disabled People / Goal: Increase number of adults receiving direct payments to 500 in 2008.
Increase number of adults with mental health problems using Direct payments from 10 in 2005 to 50 in 2009.
Increase number of people with disabilities in employment. / Tom Hendrie
David Le Mare
Sheila Don
David Le Mare
Andy Woods
Tom Hendrie / March 2007
March 2007
EIA During 2006
EIA During 2006
EIA During 2006 / Feedback from key partner organisations in the voluntary, private and health sector
Feedback from Direct Payment User Groups
Mental Health National Service Framework Implementation Plan.
Physical Disability and Sensory Impairment Strategy
Direct Payments Policy
Goal: Review day services to offer users increased diversity and choice by 2007. / Mark Hastings
Peter Woodhouse / EIA During 2006
EIA During 2006 / Feedback from Service Users and key partner organisations in the voluntary, private and health sector
Older People’s Strategy
Improving the Health and Wellbeing of Adults
Number of adults who are supported to establish or maintain independent living / Goal: Measure the extent to which service users are being supported to establish and maintain independent living.
Supporting People Eligibility Framework
Supporting People 2 Year Plan 2006-2008 / Paul Latimer / EIA During 2006 / Feedback from user groups/ housing support providers and commissioners
Promote Healthy Lifestyles / Goal: Ensure that menus within residential establishments include 5 portions of fruit and Veg each day. / Donna Storey / EIA During 2006
Improve Council Services
Council will focus its services on customer needs and increase accessibility / Goal: Increase proportion of residents satisfied with the Council to 57% in 2006 and 60% in 2009. / Peter Knock / EIA During 2006
Policies on producing information in accessible formats

Key priority 1: Integrated prejudicial incident reporting system

The goal is to develop a reporting system that captures any type of discriminatory incident. This will extend the principle of the McPherson Report, where the definition of an incident is based on perception rather than establishing proof.

Officer responsible for co-ordination / Sheila Don
Reporting periods / End of June/September/December/April
Other directorate equality activity relating to incident reporting / Encourage and facilitate attendance on Corporate Equality and Diversity Training

Key Priority 2: Elected Members to have the right support to deliver equalities

The goal is to ensure that elected Members receive the right support to ensure that they can confidently:

Represent constituents who experience discrimination.
Promote the Council’s equalities agenda.

Proposed work to brief Cabinet Portfolio holder of directorate equalities activity / N/A / The Equality Officer will report quarterly on progress to Theme A Scrutiny Panel and Performance Group.
Proposed work to inform Local Committees of directorate activity / N/A
Proposed work to inform relevant Scrutiny Panel of directorate equalities activity / N/A
Other directorate equality activity relating to supporting Members / N/A

Key priority 3: All staff to have equalities objectives

The goal is to ensure that all staff are aware of their responsibilities to deliver an equal service, and that this informs their appraisal. Specific equalities objectives will be set for Personal Development Plans across the council.

Equality objective / Will the activity be directorate wide? / If not which units will it apply to? / Lead officer / Review date
YES / Sheila Don
Other directorate equality activity relating to staff development / Encourage and facilitate attendance on Corporate Equality and Diversity Training

Key priority 4: All outsourced organisations will be equality

proofed

The goal is to ensure that independent organisations abide by the Council’s Corporate Equality and Diversity Policy, as well as the Equality Implementation Strategy. Equalities will be built into all contract negotiations and organisations with a consistently poor equalities record will be considered for re-tendering.

Functions outsourced / Organisation name and type (i.e. business or voluntary sector) / Lead officers (council and other organisation) / Is equalities part of the monitoring? / Review date
The Directorate outsources a number of functions to the private and voluntary sector. / Jenny Weaver / Yes / Contracts are reviewed at least annually
Other directorate equality activity relating to outsourced organisations / N/A

Key priority 5: The Council is a more inclusive employer

The Goal is to ensure that the make up of the workforce reflects the diversity of Cumbria’s population, and that harassment is driven out of the workplace.

Officer responsible for co-ordination / Sheila Don
Other directorate equality activity relating to employee inclusion / Ethnicity, Age, Disability and Gender of all staff monitored half yearly.
Exit interviews held with all staff retiring or leaving the organisation.

Key priority 6: Council services are fully accessible

The goal is to ensure that all members of the public receive support and information about the Council that meets their access needs. This will include reworking the Equalities pages on the Council’s website and ensuring that the Cumbria Multi-Cultural Centre supports people throughout the county.

Officer responsible for co-ordination / Peter Knock
Other directorate equality activity relating to accessible services / N/A if no other action is applicable

Key priority 7: Developing Cumbria Equality and Diversity Partnership

The goal is to integrate the Cumbria Race and Diversity Partnership into the workings of the Cumbria Strategic Partnership. This will be carried out through a strategy which outlines how equality and diversity will be embedded through the work of the Cumbria Strategic Partnership.

Directorate equality activity relating to the CSP / ECEDP Consulted on Directorate Strategy and Action Plan

Plan completed

Date completed
Signature
Printed name

Cumbria County Council Directorate Equalities Plan February 2006