Surrey County Council Full Equality Impact Assessment

  1. Context of the Service or Policy

Service or Policy being assessed_____Legal Services Local Government Group

Assessor:_Allan Wells, Local Government Group Manager_ Date _20 March 2008

What are the aims of the service or policy?

(NB this should set out the aims and objectives of the policy or service)

Appendix B of the Legal Services Service Plan

Legal Services’ overall aims and objectives:

  • Ensures that the Council makes lawful decisions
  • Provides effective legal advice and representation for all the Council’s services
  • Protects the Council’s assets reputation and staff
  • Provides legal support to the development plan making process and to the determination of planning applications
  • Delivers effective legal transactions to acquire and dispose of property goods and services

Who are the beneficiaries /users of this service or policy?

(NB this should address needs of client groups and a review of barriers to policy or services)

For this particular Group legal advice and legal representation, in connection with the following specialist local government services in Surrey County Council:

  • Children’s services.
  • Adult services.
  • Schools and Learning
  • Surrey’s schools
  • Highways
  • Environment
  • Libraries and culture

The Group does not provide legal advice and assistance in relation to procurement, property or general civil litigation issues arising in these services- this work is provided by other groups.

There are 28 posts (25.2 FTE) in the Group of which 5 are currently vacant including two covered by locum staff.

What is the existing situation in relation to minority and excluded groups in which this service/policy operates?

(NB this will require declaring what information is currently captured with respect to E&D Monitoring (all seven strands) of this service or policy. It is also important to show the relevance of capturing this data.)

Equality returns have been requested from all staff- this was included in the staff survey in March 2007 and the mini staff survey of Legal Services in January 2008. There was a return of 34 surveys in the mini survey- out of a staff group overall of 64. This result is for Legal Services as a whole – not just for the Local Government Group

Results as follows: Gender: 15% Male- 74% Female- did not wish to answer- 12%

Age: 18-35- 35%; 36-49- 27%; 50-64- 24%; did not wish to answer- 15%

Disability: No- 85%; Yes- 0%; don’t know- 3%; did not wish to answer- 15%

Race:White British: 74%; White Irish: 3%; Any other ethnic group:12%; did not wish to answer: 12%.

Religion: Christian: 68%; Jewish:3%; No religion: 12%: did not wish to answer: 18%

Sexuality: Heterosexual: 74%; do not wish to answer: 27%

Information obtained in the March 2007 survey indicated the extent to which staff considered that they had experienced or witnessed unfair treatment in relation to the various equality strands and the extent to which they considered that training and development opportunities were not being dealt with fairly.

This information was requested in order to establish a base line to assess the extent to which our workforce reflects the make up of our local communities, and to measure how fairly we provide opportunities for all our staff, irrespective of race, gender, age, disability, religion or sexual orientation.

No figures available for “Fairness and dignity” complaints in the service, and grievances that may have an equality issue included in them.

All staff have been encouraged to attend equalities awareness training over he course of the last year. Details of attendance are being obtained.

In addition some managers have gone on equalities impact training.

  1. Is there potential for this service/policy to have a negative or differential impact on minority and excluded groups or on race relations and community cohesion?

Please complete the summary of negative impact identified by equality and diversity strand:

All categories ie: Age/ Belief and faith/disability/gender/sexual orientation/ race/ trans gender/sexual / Training given to clients may be delivered in a way which might impact in a negative way on minority or excluded groups- eg are case studies sufficiently inclusive?
Belief / Faith
/ Training and development opportunities –concerns about being sensitive to issues likely to be affected by faith eg timing re festivals, food issues.
Group social activities –concerns about being sensitive to specific requirements affected by faith eg food.
Disability / Recruitment: concerns about disabled candidates not having the benefit of reasonable adjustments to provide equality of opportunity for interviews
Being able to respond quickly and effectively to concerns raised by staff about assessments required for possible disabilities and identifying reasonable adjustments that may be required.
Where we are providing training to client groups we need to be aware of any disabilities of clients attending so that reasonable adjustments can be made in advance.
Training and development opportunities –concerns about being sensitive to specific requirements affected by disability including opportunities to access the training adversely affected by disability and other issues eg food requirements. .
When dealing with litigants in person or lay witnesses either in correspondence or in meetings or in Court, there will be a need to ensure that any disability issues are adequately dealt with- eg whether by means of interpreters or advocates (where they have learning difficulties).
Race / When dealing with litigants in person or lay witnesses either in correspondence or in meetings or in Court, there will be a need to ensure that any language difficulties are adequately dealt with eg by means of translation of documents or interpreters needed at Court or meetings.
  1. Is there potential for this service/policy to have a positive impact, such as tackling discrimination, promoting equality of opportunity and / or promoting good community relations, for minority and excluded groups?

Please complete the summary of positive impact identified by equality and diversity strand, NB this would include positive initiatives delivery by the service or through the policy for the equality strands listed below:

All categories ie: Age/ Belief and faith/disability/gender/sexual orientation/ race/ trans gender/sexual / All staff in the group have been encouraged to attend equalities awareness training in the course of the last year
Legal advice work is allocated in accordance with priorities and internal protocols which avoids the prospect of it being dealt with in a discriminatory way- ie work for or in connection with certain groups being afforded a lesser priority.
Managers are encouraged to attend recruitment and other managerial training which incorporates elements to avoid the likelihood of discrimination and treating staff unfairly
Departmental meetings are used from time to time to highlight equality issues- this was also used to put together an action plan from the staff survey in 2007 which included an equality strand.
As a legal practice with Law Society Lexcel accreditation we are required to have an anti-discrimination policy. Under the new Lexcel requirements in place from 1 June 2008, this standard has been developed to include an equality policy which specifically deals with:
a: employment and partnership, recruitment and selection, training and conditions of service and promotions within the practice
b: the delivery of service
c: the instruction of counsel and experts in all professional dealings
Belief / Faith
/ For faith groups to enable practice of faith activities- eg daily prayers, religious festivals, provided that these can be reasonably accommodated within the requirements of the jobs

4. Give details of involvement, consultation and or research undertaken for each relevant equality
and diversity strand, upon which this policy/service has had an impact either internally or externally:

All categories ie: Age/ Belief and faith/disability/gender/sexual orientation/ race/ trans gender/sexual / Staff survey and min-staff survey to obtain details of make-up of group and identify any concerns about unfair practices. Concerns identified by staff about equality of opportunity for training and development – staff survey action plan addressed this issue- increased training opportunities for staff as a result.
Client feedback forms are sent out at the end of cases- whilst these do not specifically identify equality issues as a strand of feedback, there is opportunity for the client to raise any issues in a general section on the form.
There are regular meetings with senior managers from the services to discuss the overall service provision. Although equality issues are not raised as a specific item at the meetings there is the opportunity to raise any general concerns.
All staff in the group have been encouraged to attend equalities awareness training in the course of the last year
Where staff in the group are involved in training for clients from Children’s Services a feedback from is completed at the end of the training which includes the following question: “Were the event aims and objectives met in a non-discriminatory way by both the instructor and the participants?”
Belief / Faith
/ Have enabled the use of a quiet room for prayer within County Hall for faith groups; have raised awareness of Muslim festivals with managers to enable this to be taken into account in agreeing leave arrangements over holiday periods
Disability / Recruitment: managers taking advice from HR and referring to guidance available when interviewing applicants with disabilities; where essential criteria are met for applicants, ensuring that all managers are aware of the need to interview disabled applicants, and enabling managers to make reasonable adjustments to do this.
Staff survey and min-staff survey to obtain details of make-up of group and identify any concerns about unfair practices. Concerns identified by staff about equality of opportunity for training and development – staff survey action plan addressed this issue- increased training opportunities for staff as a result.
Where training has been provided for Children’s Services we have been alerted in advance in some cases where there are disability issues which we need to take into account in the delivery of the material- eg loop or lip reading requirements fro hearing impairments, production of special written materials for those with visual impairment
  1. Given your answers to the previous questions, how will your service or policy be revised to mitigate, reduce or eliminate negative impacts and enhance positive impacts?

(NB this is in effect the Recommendations to improve this policy)

Obtain specific details of equality monitoring to inform consideration of the make up of the Group.
Consideration should be given to enabling more specific feedback from clients on whether there are any equality issues arising from the work that we are doing – both in the feedback forms or in the regular client meetings.
Obtain specific information about fairness and dignity referrals or grievances that have an equality component and monitoring these at SMT meetings
Ensuring all staff in Group have attended equalities awareness training
Staff are adequately signposted to resources required when dealing with litigants in person who have disability or language difficulties and for this to be included in the Office Manual.
Contribute to the review of the equality policy to comply with the Lexcel requirements.
  1. Actions required to implement the EIA recommendations:

Action Plan: / Target / Responsibility: / Date to be completed:
Obtain monitoring information on make-up of the Group and dignity and fairness at work referrals / Baseline Information obtained and then on an annual basis / Allan Wells / 1/7/08
Look at client feedback forms and consider with Principal Solicitors whether to include equalities issues on these forms / Amended feedback forms produced and made available for use / Allan Wells and Principal Solicitors / 30/6/08
Contribute to review of equality policy for Legal Services to comply with Lexcel requirements / Policy updated and included in Office Manual / Allan Wells/Diane Owens / 1/9/08
All staff in group to have attended Equalities Awareness Training / All staff trained / Allan Wells / 31/12/08
Identify and signpost staff to any resources required to assist in dealing with litigants in person with disability and language difficulties / Details included in Office Manual / Allan Wells / 30/3/09

NB these actions should have SMART Targets

Please continue and attach a separate sheet if necessary

NB these actions should be reported to the DIG and where relevant incorporated into the Equality and Diversity Action Plan, Service Plans and or personal objectives of key staff.


7. If no actions are to be taken with respect to the recommendations please give reasons below:

Action plan review date: ____31/3/09______Name of person responsible for review: ______Allan Wells______

EIA Assessor(s): ______Allan Wells______

Name Head of Service: ___Ann Charlton______Signed: ______

Date Completed: ____20 March 2008 ______

  1. Signed hard copy and electronic version to be kept in your team for audit purposes
  2. Send an electronic copy to the SCC ‘Web Operations Team’ for publication on the SCC website
  3. Send Action Plan to DIG for review at its next meeting.

Date sent to Web Operations Team: __14/5/08______