Equality Duties Toolkit For School Reps, Divisions And Teacher Governors
For this toolkit in Welsh, please go here
About this toolkit
The purpose of this toolkit is to:
- Raise awareness of the equality duties;
- Promote good policies and practices in schools and colleges;
- Provide resources for the promotion of good policies and practices in schools and colleges; and
- Provide caseworkers with the knowledge and confidence to resolve casework using the equality duties.
What legislation does this toolkit relate to?
- The Equality Act 2010
- The Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) Regulations 2011
- The Equality Act 2010 (Statutory Duties) (Wales) Regulations 2011
Who is the toolkit for?
This toolkit is aimed at school representatives and teacher governors in all schools and FE colleges, including independent schools in England and Wales. It will also be a useful resource for Division Secretaries and Equalities Officers.
Key points
- Schools, colleges and local authorities are under a statutory duty to be proactive in the elimination of discrimination and the promotion of equal opportunities for both staff and pupils. This means they must assess the impact of their policies and practices on the people affected by them and take steps to remove any barriers that come to light where it is proportionate to do so.
- Schools, colleges and local authorities also have a statutory duty to foster good relations between people who share a particular protected characteristic and those who do not.
- Protected characteristics encompass age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.
- Local authorities and the governing bodies of maintained schools, academies and colleges with 150 or more employees have a specific legal duty to annually publish information about the workforce which demonstrates compliance with the general equality duty. Public authorities in Wales are required to publish information about employees each year regardless of the size of their workforce.
- All schools and colleges in England, regardless of the size of their workforce, should publish equality information about their employees each year to demonstrate compliance with the general equality duty, even where there is no specific legal obligation for them to do so.
Sample FIOA Request For Equality Data Guidance For Divisions In England
Equality monitoring data may be accessed through a Freedom of Information Act request much like any other data held by a school, college or local authority. The purpose of this document is to provide Divisions with guidance about how to use the Act to obtain equality data relating to staff and what to do if your request for information is rejected. Attached to this document is a sample FOIA request. Dowload here.
History, purpose and effect of the Public Sector Equality Duty