Transcript Document

Preparing for review
Georgina English
Senior Policy Officer
Health and Social Care
Commission For Racial Equality
Tel:
020 7939 0274
Race Relations Act 1976
(Statutory Duties Order) 2001
2.(2) A Race Equality Scheme shall state, in particular:
2.(2)(a) Those of its functions and policies, or proposed
policies, what that person has assessed as
relevant to its performance of the duty imposed
by section 71(1)of the Race Relations Act.
2.(3)
Such a person shall within a period of three years
from 31 May 2002, and within each further
period of three years, review the assessment
referred to in paragraph (2)(a).
Where we are now
Approaching the three year review (May
31st 2005)
CRE expectations – public authorities will have
• Published annual reports in line with their employment duty, detailing
Ethnic Monitoring data.
• Conducted Race Equality Impact Assessments
• Published reports on their monitoring impact assessments and
consultation activity – which are accessible and in line with
arrangements set out in the RES
• Reviewed action plans to assess what progress has been made in
implementing the duty
Also
• SHAs have used the performance assessment framework to review
implementation of schemes by PCTs and Trusts
• PCTs, Trusts and SHAs share examples of good practice/what is
working well
Why?
• Mainstream the function of race equality
• Developing a systematic way to address race
equality in everyday operations
• Statutory legal requirement.
Definitions
• Functions
– this includes your ‘duties and powers’
• Policies
– ‘formal and informal’ decisions you make to carry out
functions
• Relevant
– ‘having implications for’ the general duty
• General Duty - ‘due regard to the need to’
– eliminate discrimination
– promote equality of opportunity, and
– promote good race relations
What do you need to do?
• Review existing functions and policies
• Identify recently adopted or proposed functions and
policies
• Assess relevance of your functions and policies
• Prioritise your relevant functions and policies
• Publish the prioritised functions and policies
Issues:
 “When does this all have to be done by?”
 “Do we have to do this re-assessment?”
 “Is there any chance of an extension?”
Identifying functions and policies
• Possible ways of listing functions & policies
– Legislative frameworks
– Departmental strategies
– Identification by individuals
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Functions clearly related to specific duties
– Policy development,
– Impact assessment
– Consultation
– Training
– Access
• Issues:
– The difference between functions and policies
– highlight proposed policies
– whose responsibility?
– diversity or race equality
Re-prioritising functions and policies for
relevance to the general duty
How to prioritise functions and policies?
• How many parts of the general duty are relevant to the
function or policy?
• How much evidence do we have - none, little, some, or
a lot.
• Are the public (especially ethnic minority communities)
worried that a certain function or policy is discriminatory
or racist?
Issues:
 “It’s not a priority any more”
 “There's no evidence’
Publication
Revised list of functions and policies
How to publish the list of functions and policies?
• Glossy document not the aim but needs to be publicly
available
• Link with Freedom of Information Act
• Consider access to information and services
arrangements
Issues:
 “Easy access document” (Translation? Easy Read?
Braille)
 “What about non-relevant functions and policies?”
Revising priorities
• TB
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Screening
Significant increase in TB in an area
High levels of homelessness
Mobile population dispersed asylum seekers/
traveller community
– BCG rates down
– Low attendance at screening appointments
– Strong local and national imperative to make a
priority
Identifying Relevance
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Which of the aspects is relevant?
Is there a reason to believe that there will be an impact
Is a large population affected?
And/or a specific population
Does that population have known health inequalities
Has there been monitoring previously about the impact
on that population of the function-screening/ health
promotion/ support
• Is there existing public concern about discrimination?
• What are the implications for staff?
Practical steps
• Make use of the grid – in ‘A guide for public authorities’
• Review progress in implementing current RES action
plan, to ensure incomplete tasks are addressed
• Prioritise action corporately and by department
• Mainstream into service/departmental action plans
• Identify any likely new functions or policies that will be
relevant in the next three year cycle. E.g. health equity
audit
CRE compliance monitoring
What the CRE will be looking for:
• A comprehensive list of relevant functions and policies
• List of proposed policies
• Evidence that an assessment has been carried out
• The authority's assessment includes service delivery,
procurement (GPs contracts), enforcement, and
employment functions and policies.
Issues:
 “Suppose PCTs and Trusts fall short of the minimum
requirements?”
Supporting the process
Action for SHAs
• Some SHAs have used assessment template to review PCT
and NHS trust Schemes and action plans to assess progress
in implementing the Duty
• Any that have not should be planning to assess before May 31
• Use the NHS SHA Race Equality Guide 2004
• Any reassessment should show how functions/ policy meets
all three strands of the Duty
• Support health organisations in revisiting RES and
reprioritising policies
• Ensure they know of help available from DH
• Ensure they know of resources on CRE Website
• Be positive : the health service will gain from doing this well
www.cre.gov.uk
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All guides now available and downloadable
specific guidance note on Review
CRE Guidance on race equality impact assessment
No more one to one advice