Equality and Diversity Action Plan Annual Position Statement May 2016 Equality Objectives 2015-17 We will work with our residents, employees and partners to deliver our objectives over the next two years. The delivery of the objectives will be driven and supported by our E&D action plan. Deliver excellent customer services Work with individuals and communities to promote diversity, cohesion opportunities, and sustainability Work with others to help people feel safe and included in our communities Be a successful, fair and inclusive employer
Equality and Diversity Action Plan Annual Position Statement May 2016 1. Work with individuals and communities to promote: diversity, cohesion, opportunities, sustainability Ref Objective Outcomes Status 1.1 1185 Encourage participation in community events to promote diversity and cohesion Deliver 5 community events, each with a target attendance of 100. International Children s Day Older Persons Festival Youth Festival Digital Festival CBH Awards evening Support partnership events, for example: Black History Month Cheltenham Together Events International Children s Day: Over 300 attendees. Children and parents of all nationalities came together to enjoy a day full of fun, information and opportunities to share their views about getting online. Older People's Festival:. Wallace House Hub open day showcased the array of activities being delivered from the hub. Over 50 people attended (partners and residents). As a result of the open day, new people have attended hub activities. Summers End Youth Festival: Approximately 300 young people from all backgrounds came together to enjoy music and show off their skills in a range of activities. The event created a buzz and enabled young people to enjoy common interests with others outside of their usual friendship circles. Digital Festival: Over 75 people attended (partners and residents). As a result of the event, residents were introduced to getting online and technology which assists independent living. Several visitors signed up for further training and went on to attend the CBH Digital Den to learn how to use a computer, get online for the first time and develop their skills. CBH Awards evening 2016: celebrating inspirational people. 48 nominations were received with 8 winners and 11 highly commended. Over 100 attendees at the event. St Pauls Summer Integration Day: Cohesion activities delivered with new and existing St Paul s residents. The event created a good sense of community spirit and encouraged the integration of diverse communities. Oakley Fun day: Approximately 300 attendees Hester's Way Fun Day: Approximately 250 attendees Both events united communities together in a relaxed, fun environment.
Black History Month: CBH promoted the events taking place across Cheltenham and encouraged residents to take part and find out more about black history. Cheltenham Together events: CBH supported the Polish community to take part in a cultural awareness day with people from diverse cultural backgrounds, including sharing food and demonstrating national dress for each country. This event was held in Cheltenham town centre and was open to the public to enable everyone to enjoy an event promoting cultural diversity. LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual and Transgender) History Month: CBH is part of a new LGBT partnership in Cheltenham and promoted LGBT events taking place across Cheltenham. 1.2 Support our communities of interest groups/forums to become selfsustainable through the development of residents groups/tara Polish Community Forum Cheltenham Senior Community Voice Disabled Community Forum The polish community is one of the largest growing communities in Cheltenham. The Polish Community Forum (PCF) was set up to improve CBH s understanding of needs and challenges that Polish tenants face. The PCF has influenced CBH services to improve responsiveness to issues such as language barriers and ASB. Having achieved its objective, the PCF closed and members joined the Polish TARA, which is an independent group able to offer peer support to the polish community. A number of former PCF members attend the Shaping Services working group and continue to influence services. The Cheltenham Senior Community Voice (CSCV) is open to any resident of Cheltenham aged 50+. Their aim is to influence local services and national policy for older people as an independent group. CBH are supporting them to become independent. Articles have been published in the local Viewpoint magazine and CBH News to advertise for people interested in joining the group. The AGM in April was attended by many new people. A new committee was elected and new independent constitution was adopted. Funding will now be sought by the group to support their activities. The group have been involved in consultation for the new Independent Living Support Service and made several recommendations for action. These included: reducing isolation, a befriending scheme, and advertising the Hub activities widely. The group plan to focus on transport provision in their next discussion.
The Disabled Community Forum (DCF) was set up to give disabled people a voice and opportunities to influence and improve CBH services for disabled tenants. Having achieved its objective and encouraged personal development for all members, the DCF is now closed. Former members are now offering peer support to each other and to others at the Oasis Ability Hub whilst others have gone on to volunteer with different organisations. The Oasis Ability Hub is seen as an environment where members are empowered to support each other and strive for self-progression and development. A number of former DCF members are attending the Shaping Services working group and continue to influence services. Through these groups and the development of community hubs, residents have been able to build social or support networks, have increased confidence, influenced change, and empowered to live a more active life and participate in their local community. 1.3 Provide E&D training to involved tenants to enable them to understand and share our values and aims, and have the confidence to promote E&D and challenge/report negative behaviour in the community TSIP Cheltenham Senior Community Voice Polish Community Forum Shaping Services Group Disabled Community Forum 1.4 Identify those affected by Welfare Reform and work with them to minimise disadvantage and create a sustainable financial environment TSIP E&D training was delivered via TPAS online E&D module. TSIP now have a good understanding of the meaning of E & D and of the requirement to comply with legislation. Training was delivered to DCF and PCF members through their membership of the Shaping Services working group. Cheltenham Senior Community Voice training will be delivered at their meeting in May 2016. We regularly identify tenants affected by the Welfare Reform Act and have implemented a range of advice and support mechanisms: * CBH Benefit & Money Advice service (704 cases over the last 12 months) * CBH Employment Initiatives Service (3768 contacts in the last 12 months) * Options for those tenants impacted by the bedroom tax including CBH my move scheme (342 cases in the last 12 months) * Assistance in accessing discretionary housing payment
. Deliver excellent customer services 2.1 Maintain up to date tenant profiling information for at least 95% of our tenants, and use it to tailor the way we provide services, respond to diverse need, and ensure we do not discriminate 2.2 Meet internal and external customer communication in ways that suit them e.g. language interpreter or translation, British Sign Language (BSL), Braille, audio, and large print. We currently have tenant profiling information for 95.3% of lead tenants. This has enabled us to tailor services, for example; a new gardening assistance scheme for disabled residents older peoples independent living service 4 community hubs delivering activities which meet the needs of older, younger and disabled people, children and parents, promote community cohesion, reducing isolation, enabling access to health and wellbeing activities and tenancy support information. Those who may be at a disadvantage are now able to benefit from local services and activities which meet their needs. The profiling information has been further enhanced by GIS Earthlight software, implemented by CBH Business Support Team. This enables the mapping of demographics visually across the stock and has saved time and focussed resources. Our information systems ensure that all staff have access to sources of alternative methods of communication. The E&D Forum advise on best practice and encourage all staff to use the tools available. There has been an increase in the use of translation and interpreter services, which demonstrates regard for meeting needs effectively. Tenants who are deaf or blind have participated in involvement opportunities through the provision of BSL and Braille, and have used the assistive technology in the Digital Den.. Staff are advised to send out all correspondence in size 14 Arial font where possible if print size preference is not available, to reduce the barrier for those with sight impairments. Monitoring indicates that between April 2015 and March 2016 at least: 6 items were provided to tenants in Braille 2 British Sign Language (BSL) interpreters were provided 11 hearing support interventions were provided 10 language interpreters were provided 15 translations were provided 13 items were provided in large print
2.3 Demonstrate good practice through accreditation which tests and affirms the quality of our performance Respect Charter Social Housing Equality Framework (SHEF) CBH are signed up to the Respect Charter for ASB (Anti-Social Behaviour) through the Chartered Institute for Housing. CBH have applied for a review against the Social Housing Equality Framework (SHEF). CBH are aiming to attain an Excellent level outcome in order to demonstrate CBH s good practices in E&D and commitment to meeting diverse need. CBH encourages contractors to sign up to the Considerate Constructors Scheme in order to demonstrate a commitment to respecting the community, and valuing their workforce. 2.4 Work with our contractor partners to ensure that they share our values for equality, diversity, respect and fairness when providing services on our behalf. Ensure every tender applicant demonstrates commitment to E&D through provision of an E&D policy, supporting information and training evidence Ensure every contractor or small business receives and signs up to our E&D guide for third parties CBH has built equality into the procurement process to ensure that contractors understand our values and responsibilities and are committed to carrying out their work in a manner which upholds these and demonstrates their own commitment to E&D. E&D carries a weighting within the Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (PQQ) and is evaluated as part of the contract award process. Contractors are required to sign up to our third party guide, which enables them to state their commitment to E&D, produce their equality policy and confirm that they have trained their workforce to understand and uphold their responsibilities for equality. Equality training is offered to contractors who are not able to demonstrate their understanding of equality. Throughout delivery of the contract, performance is monitored and discussed at contract management meetings. Care is taken to address individual equality needs which may arise during contract delivery. This is achieved through support from a Tenant/Resident Liaison Officer and through regular communications between CBH, tenants and contractors.
3. Work with others to help people feel safe and included in our communities 3.1 Work with partners to deliver joint initiatives which promote cohesion and inclusion, e.g. the Borough and County Councils, Cheltenham Together, third sector and local housing providers. CBH continues to work strategically with Cheltenham Strategic Leadership Group (SLG), Positive Lives Partnership (PLP) and Positive Participation Partnership (PPP) to develop more cohesive communities. CBH is a member of a county wide Digital Inclusion Forum working to address digital exclusion and support residents to get online (Go On Gloucestershire). Attend Cheltenham Strategic Partnership (CSP), Positive Lives Partnership (PLP) and Positive Participation Partnership (PPP) meetings, to achieve local joint strategic aims. CBH is hosting and promoting successful English speaking conversation classes, led by residents to support individuals to improve their English language skills. CBH has worked with Gloucestershire Action for Refugees and Asylum Seekers (GARAS) and other agencies on order to ensure that Syrian refugees can integrate into the community. We have strong partnerships with organisations to deliver projects or initiatives which meet diverse equality objectives: Action for Blind People; a charity delivering support services, training, counselling, assistive technology and more, to our tenants and wider population GlosCol and Adult Education; offering IT training to enable residents to get online Cheltenham Together; a group which promotes the integration of diverse communities in order to increase understanding and reduce tensions. LGBT partnership; organisations and individuals working together to research and improve services and social networking opportunities. Barnwood Trust;a charity improving the quality of life of people with disabilities, offering grant funding, awareness training and practical support CBH focusses on community cohesion and has delivered community festivals and events through provision of information or activities with a network of partners. These events aim to; a) Benefit communities of interest b) Promote diversity and community cohesion c) Celebrate inspirational people
3.2 Develop partnerships which will enhance our knowledge and the support we can offer our communities Establish partnerships with: Stonewall Transgender community Capture outcomes from current partnerships: Gloucestershire Domestic Abuse Support Service (GDASS) Police CBH E&D Forum received a presentation from Stonewall which gave an overview of their aims and objectives and options for partnership working. CBH s relationship with the transgender community has developed over the last 12 months and helped us to understand the challenges the transgender community face. CBH developed a domestic abuse forum and are part of the Cheltenham and Tewkesbury Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence Forum. The safer estates team work closely with the local Police on a regular basis to help tackle crime and anti-social behaviour. Police assist CBH with joint visits, community safety surveys. CBH is now a third party hate crime reporting centre. CBH is a founding member of the County Hoarding Forum, working to develop a County-wide protocol to address hoarding and deliver support services for those with mental health illnesses. 4. Be a successful, fair and inclusive employer 4.1 Maintain up to date, good quality employee profiling information from our employees and use it to inform our employment policies, practices and to ensure we provide a fair, accessible and inclusive work environment. CBH collects employee diversity monitoring information from new employees as part of the recruitment process. In addition, CBH encourages all employees to volunteer their diversity information to ensure that we understand the workforce demographic. Current data indicates that the workforce has become more diverse. Since 2014, CBH has been able to analyse employee data and is therefore aware of the potential impact of policy and practice upon protected characteristic groups. The data has been used in the process of Equality Analysis to ensure that we provide a fair, accessible and inclusive work environment. 4.2 Provide induction and refresher E&D training to ensure that all employees can deliver fair and inclusive services to our diverse customers, E&D Forum members deliver E&D induction training to all new employees in their team. In addition, all new employees are required to complete the E&D E-learning module prior to their 3 month review.
and embed the training through the E&D Forum. Employees receive annual E&D refresher training and are required to complete the E&D E-learning module or a separate bespoke E&D refresher training. CBH E&D Forum received the following presentations to enhance their knowledge: NHS 2gether Trust Social Inclusion team, Gloucestershire Deaf Association Stonewall 4.3 Demonstrate good practice through accreditation which tests and affirms the quality of our approach to being a successful, fair and inclusive employer. Two Ticks positive about disabled people Investors In People (IIP) Mindful Employer CBH holds the Two Ticks Award, which demonstrates our commitment to encourage job applications from individuals with a disability and to interview any disabled applicant who meets the minimum criteria. CBH has adopted the Mindful Employer approach, which means that we are positive about supporting employees who have mental health illness. To tackle the stigma of mental health and to raise awareness of support available, we have: Publicised the 2gether Trust Lets Talk programme on our intranet to signpost employees to the courses and sessions. Promoted the CBH Employee Assistance Programme. Included a mental health awareness session in the managers training and development programme. Encouraged all employees to take part in the Time to Talk let s talk about mental health day. Investors in People sets a standard for better people management and is an internationally recognised accreditation. Successful accreditation against the Investors in People Standard is the sign of a great employer, an outperforming place to work and a clear commitment to sustainability. The IIP Standard is underpinned by a rigorous assessment methodology and framework which reflects the best practices in high performance working, including the latest workplace trends, essential skills and effective structures required. CBH was first accredited as an Investor in People in June 2008 and has since had a number of successful reaccreditation assessments. We are currently planning for the latest assessment due in June 2016.