Our statutory duty
We have a legal duty to publish our equality objectives every four years. We must work to:
- stop discrimination, harassment, victimisation and other unlawful behaviour
- advance equality of opportunity between people with protected characteristics and those without
- foster good relations between people with protected characteristics and those without
To advance equality we must:
- remove or reduce the disadvantages people suffer due to their protected characteristics
- meet the different needs of people from protected groups
- help underrepresented groups to take part in public life and other activities
The design and delivery of our services must reflect these priorities. We work to embed equality and good relations in our daily business. And we look for ways to improve. That means regular reviews of how we work. It's vital to ensure we're consistent and effective. We must improve the lives of all our diverse residents.
What are 'protected characteristics'?
Protected characteristics are aspects of a person's identity protected by law. It's against the law to discriminate someone because of:
- age (young and old)
- disability
- gender reassignment
- marriage and civil partnership
- pregnancy and maternity
- race
- religion or belief
- sex
- sexual orientation
Other groups we want to support
We know there are other groups who face discrimination and disadvantage. We know poverty is a huge problem for many living here. Some people face multiple barriers. So, we want to address these inequalities too. And we want to treat these groups in a similar way to those protected by law. They are:
- Carers
- Care-experienced people and care leavers
- Members of the armed forces and their families (current and former)
- People experiencing homelessness
- People living in poverty