Our Equality and Cohesion Plan sets out how we will meet our legal duty, under the Equality Act 2010, to promote equality, eradicate unfair discrimination and support diversity.
We developed our Equality and Cohesion Plan from our previous equality schemes for race, gender and disability. We then:
- Looked again at the schemes
- Considered the results and data from our consultations such as the Annual Residents’ survey, Liveability Survey and the Tenants’ Survey
- Asked local people and organisations for their views, using focus groups and events
- Looked at the results of our staff satisfaction survey and feedback from staff focus groups that were set up as a result of the survey
- Took feedback on the draft of the scheme from residents and staff
- Held a 12-week consultation to agree the final scheme.
The long-term aim of the Equality and Cohesion Plan is to get rid of social and economic inequality for our residents and to build a strong community where individuals are able to fulfil their potential.
The three year plan ran from April 2011 until March 2014.
Equality and Cohesion Plan (PDF)
Equality and Cohesion Plan easy read - short version (PDF)
Equality and Cohesion Plan easy read - longer version (PDF)
Emerging equality plan
Our emerging approach to equality, diversity and inclusion continues to get rid of social and economic inequality for our residents and to build community wealth. We consider equality and inclusion within the Mayor’s six strategic objectives.
- Priority One - Bright Futures- Supporting Children and Young People’s aspirations, keeping them safe and removing barriers to success.
- Priority Two - Building Communities- A housing offer for residents that delivers more genuinely affordable homes in well-designed neighbourhoods.
- Priority three - Community Wealth Building- A strong economy that supports local businesses, nurtures talent and provides opportunities for all.
- Priority four – An Environment for All- An attractive borough which encourages active lifestyles, social integration and civic responsibility.
- Priority five – Quality of Life- Improving our health and social care system so it works for Newham residents.
- Priority Six – An Efficient and Effective Council- Making Newham Council work better for everyone.
A summary of our revised approached will be published in 2020/21
Current equality objectives
Our main equality objectives, for the purpose of the Equality Act 2010, are set out in our Equality and Cohesion Plan. The main three objectives are:
- Building personal and economic capacity
- Cultivating trust and fairness
- Connecting people
These equality objectives are also part of our commitment to build resilience in everything we do.
Making sure we are meeting our objectives
We monitor a range of equality-related data to make sure we are meeting these objectives. This equality data and the three main equality objectives will be measured against the Resilience Performance Framework that we are currently developing to deliver our vision for building resilience.
Equality information
As part of our equality commitment in line with our Mayor's priorities, we record and publish equality information which we use to measure our progress on delivering targets.
We look at our performance targets and priorities every year. We integrate our equality objectives and the equality information we have collected into our framework to manage our performance, our corporate business plan and our plans for each of our services.
We use the equality information we collect to help us to:
- Understand the impact of our polices and practices
- Improve our services making sure that they are accessible for all residents
- Deliver equality as an employer.
Duty to publish equality data under the Equality Act 2010 (Word)
Duty to publish equality data under the Equality Act 2010 (PDF)
Equality impact assessments
An equality impact assessment is a way of measuring the potential impact that a policy or service may have on different groups.
Our equality impact assessments (EqIAs) contribute to our Equality and Cohesion Plan by showing how we have given appropriate consideration to equality in how we do business.
We train staff on how to do equality impact assessments to make sure that they are done at the right time, for the right things and to the highest standards.
Find out more about equality impact assessments