Agenda item

To consider a presentation on the subject of gender equalities.

(Report attached)

The Committee received a presentation on the Council’s Gender Equalities Scheme and the Council’s requirement to abide by a new Gender Equality Duty which came into force from April 2007 and publish a scheme showing how the Authority would meet their general duties to eliminate unlawful discrimination between men and women, eliminate harassment based on gender and promote equality of opportunity between men and women. 

Members noted that the gender equality duty required the Council to demonstrate through specific duties and practical measures how they intended to establish and operate the scheme and Officers suggested that a Lead Officer role would need to be established at the end of the process. 

It was reported that the 2007 Duties were further amended in 2008 to include demonstrable actions to eliminate discrimination and harassment against transsexual and transgender people across all sectors.  Officers advised that emerging new guidance meant the scheme was somewhat fluid at the moment and further changes were likely before coming into effect in June 2011. 

Members were advised that the Council was expected to focus on four main issues identified as being the most significant for Gender Equality, namely:

1)     income and pay gaps;

2)     gender power;

3)     violence and aggression against women and girls; and

4)     discrimination and harassment against transsexual and transgender people.

The Council would be required to identify what functions were already in place to address the four areas and consider how to provide for what it did not have.  Evidence would need to be collected to prove that appropriate consultation, monitoring, assessment of impact of actions and review progress had been undertaken to identify the most important issues for gender equality within the Council’s remit.  The Council would also have to consider addressing the gender pay-gap within its wider remit.  

The Council’s Policy would need to be clarified and the process would need to be achieved through:

1)     leadership;

2)     ownership of policy objectives by Service Departments;

3)     collection of information by gender in delivery of services and employment opportunities whenever possible; and

4)     consultation and involvement with the community and partners.

Members were informed that Bromsgrove’s current scheme, whilst not perfect, would probably be acceptable under the new arrangements.  Work was being done however, on a new scheme to address longer term objectives. 

Officers provided clarification on a number of points, including a query on whether the Council had undertaken a pay equality audit.  Members were advised that this would form part of the Job Evaluation process. 

The Head of Legal, Equalities and Democratic Services reported that the vagueness of initial guidance had not helped but new information being provided would help to set up a framework through which specific actions that would fall into the scheme could be taken as a matter of course.

Members discussed the contribution the Council could make to address issues of violence against women and children.  Officers advised that the Council could consider providing a range of services, for example rape crisis centres and refuges.  Local authorities were being looked to to provide services for an anticipated high demand.  It was suggested that the Equality and Human Rights Commission did not seem to understand the financial constraints on small local authorities.  Any provision of specialist services would have to be looked at on a partnership basis, such as through shared services. 

Officers advised that both recording and monitoring of reported incidents were undertaken and gender discrimination would form part of part of any local authority scheme.  Mention was made of the Community Forum, a vibrant group of people who provided very good imput into consultations and various other partnerships, such as with the Police.  The Council had a number of mechanisms that could be evidenced to prove its compliance; there was, however, a need to ensure that all measures possible were put in place to avoid any challenges.

The Union perspective was that the Gender Equalities Scheme covered a wide, often vague, subject matter and that budgets would potentially be an issue. It was, however, a step in the right direct and something that the Council, working with partners, needed to consider. 

It was agreed that of the four main issues identified as being significant, the causes and consequences of violence against women and girls was the most important area for further scrutiny.

RESOLVED that

1)         the presentation and supporting documents be noted; and

2)         the domestic violence strand of the identified four main focus areas be referred on to the Crime and Disorder Scrutiny Panel for further discussion.