7/7/20161 The Public Sector Equality Duty for Schools in England Jonathan Timbers – Policy Manager, PSED Team, Equality and Human Rights Commission

7/7/20162 Issues to be covered Key dates Protected characteristics Benefits of the equality duty General equality duty Commissioning and procurement The specific duties Monitoring and enforcement Guidance for Schools

Key dates The general equality duty came into force on 5 April April 2012: Publish equality information ‘to demonstrate compliance with the general equality duty’ 6 April 2012: Equality Objectives 5 April 2012: Renew published equality information and every year thereafter April 2016: New Equality Objectives

7/7/20164 Protected characteristics (or protected groups) Age (only in employment) Disability Pregnancy and maternity Religion or belief Race Sex Sexual orientation Gender reassignment Marriage and civil partnerships (but just for the first aim of the duty)

7/7/20165 Benefits of the equality duty Encourages schools to use evidence to understand and address needs of protected groups of pupils Builds capacity to identify risk and opportunity and respond early Promotes transparency and accountability Allows schools to demonstrate success Provides a framework for effective leadership and management

7/7/20166 The general equality duty In the exercise of their functions, public authorities must have due regard to the need to: Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation and any other conduct that is unlawful under the Equality Act. Advance equality of opportunity Foster good relations

7/7/20167 Advancing equality Remove or minimise disadvantages suffered by people with protected characteristics due to having that characteristic. Take steps to meet the needs of people with protected characteristics that are different from people who do not have that characteristic (including taking account of a disability). Encourage protected groups to participate in public life and in any other activity where participation is disproportionately low.

7/7/20168 Fostering good relations Tackle prejudice Promote understanding

7/7/20169 Who the general duty applies to All maintained schools, including voluntary controlled and voluntary aided schools. Public referral units Academies Local Authorities Please note that these public authorities are also subject to the specific duties.

7/7/ Equality information Equality information is useful for assessing the impact of your policies, procedures and practices on pupils. You will already have school information on gender, race and disability (SEN). You will have information on other protected groups available through individual tracking and monitoring and teachers’ records. There is also a lot of information available on the DfE, OFSTED and EHRC websites, and from the voluntary sector. The information you use should be relevant to your circumstances.

7/7/ Sensitive equality information Where employees and service users are not ready to be asked about certain characteristics (e.g. sexual orientation), take steps to develop a culture of trust so this can be done in the future. If this information is collected, explain why it is being collected, how it will be used, and how privacy will be protected. Analysing national or local research and engagement with protected groups is also useful for identifying issues of concern.

7/7/ Assessing the impact on equality Assessing the impact on equality of your policies and practices is an important part of complying with the general equality duty. The general equality duty does not specify how you should undertake your assessments. Case law from the previous duties indicates that these assessments should be done before decisions are made, and that a written record is useful for demonstrating compliance.

7/7/ Some case law principles Those who exercise functions must be aware of the duty’s requirements and decision-makers must be fully aware of the implications of the duty when making decisions about policies. The duty must be complied with before and at the time a policy is under consideration and decisions are taken. Consideration of equality matters should be an integral part of decision-making. They must be accorded their proper importance. Third parties exercising public functions for a public authority must comply with the duty.

7/7/ Commissioning and procurement The general equality duty applies to procurement and commissioning by authorities listed in schedule 19, regardless of the value of the contract. The general equality duty applies to procurement and commissioning by organisations who are delivering public functions (but only in relation to their public functions). The Commission is planning to publish a guide to equality and procurement in Autumn 2011.

7/7/ Specific duties (England) 1. Publish equality information: Publish information to demonstrate compliance with the general equality duty by 6 April 2012, then annually. Publish this in an accessible manner Public authorities with under 150 employees not required to publish information on employees (but should collect this for developing objectives and assessing the impact on equality of their employment policies).

7/7/ Specific duties (England) This information shall include information relating to people from protected groups who are: Employees Affected by its policies and practices

7/7/ Specific duties (England) 2. Prepare and publish equality objectives Prepare and publish one or more objectives (to help you meet the general equality duty) by 6 April 2012, and at least every four years after that. Ensure the objectives are specific and measurable.

7/7/ Monitoring and enforcement The Equality and Human Rights Commission is responsible for monitoring and enforcing the equality duty. Individuals with an interest can apply for judicial review in relation to a breach of the general equality duty. The range of enforcement tools set out for the Commission under the Equality Act 2006 still apply to the equality duty. These include: compliance notices, judicial review, section 31 assessments, section 23 agreements and legal interventions.

7/7/ Guidance for Schools DfE Guidance on the Equality Act es/equalityanddiversity/a /the-equality-act-2010 EHRC Guidance on Equality Act 2010 for schools guidance/education-providers-schools-guidance/ The essential guide to the public sector equality duty Equality analysis and the equality duty Engagement and the equality duty Equality objectives and the equality duty Equality information and the equality duty guidance/public-sector-equality-duty/guidance-on-the-equality- dutyhttp:// guidance/public-sector-equality-duty/guidance-on-the-equality- duty

7/7/ Relevant EHRC Research and Teaching Materials Triennual review britain/full-report-and-evidence-downloads/ The equality duty and schools sector-equality-duty/research-and-policy-papers-on-the- duty/#The_equality_duties_and_schools_report Equal Rights, Equal Respect rights-equal-respect/