Slough Borough Council has achieved level three of the Equality Standard for local government which demonstrates its progress and commitment to equalities and diversity.
The Slough assessment involved a two-day on-site visit in March, staff interviews and a self-assessment. The council did well in all the four areas of the assessment, which are:
* Leadership and corporate commitment
* Community engagement and accountability
* Service delivery and customer care
* Employment and training
The assessors said the Slough council showed an honest, mature and realistic approach to equality and diversity, with services being fair and accessible. They also said officers and members of all political parties are committed to equality and diversity, with clear ownership beyond management to teams and individuals.
Strong partnership working was demonstrated by the Slough Against Violent Extreme (SAVE) project, which demonstrates a commitment to preventing violent extremism, supported by all communities in Slough.
The assessors were complimentary about the annual Slough diversity conference, describing it as ‘a good example of both public accountability and partnership work’, with ‘recent expansion beyond race equality issues welcomed by the community and voluntary sector representatives.’
The assessment also praised the developing procurement practices, and said: “The requirement for contractors to provide equality monitoring reports on employee representation across their organisations demonstrates sophistication and a proactive attitude that should be lauded as best practice.”
The assessors were particularly impressed with Slough employment and training, highlighting the following strengths:
* Managers are open and accommodating; there is a positive open door policy. Staff are enthusiastic, dedicated and feel valued
* There is clear evidence that the equalities agenda is owned across the council by teams and individuals. Staff are culturally aware
* There are flexible, family friendly working arrangements
* The workforce is fairly representative of the community it serves
* Job evaluation and pay harmonisation are at an advanced stage
* Communications have been improved including use of the intranet, internet and magazine
* There is a Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME) staff group and a disabled staff group
* A multi-faith room has been provided
* There has been a good take up of equality and diversity members’ training for both the induction of new members and ongoing training
The assessment emphasised areas of good work in all directorates and the assessors felt the council was missing out on opportunities to be proactive in sharing this.
Whilst overall staff representation was applauded, the assessors felt that people from ethnic minorities were still under-represented in senior management, as were staff with a disability.
The assessors were impressed with the number of Equality Impact Assessments conducted and recommended the council should now move towards an approach more focused on customer service and improvement.
Christine Ford, equalities manager for Slough Borough Council, said: “I’m delighted with the outcome of this assessment.
“There’s still a huge amount of work to be done but we have progressed well in such a short space of time. The assessors were very positive and enjoyed being here.
“They were impressed with our energy and came away with the feeling that Slough was working from a ‘good’ basis towards excellence.”
Slough Borough Council
