At the heart of the Equality Act is the Public Sector Equality Duty, which aims to tackle discrimination and inequality by embedding equality considerations in the day-to-day work of all public bodies.
Equality and community cohesion
At the heart of the Equality Act is the Public Sector Equality Duty, which aims to tackle discrimination and inequality by embedding equality considerations in the day-to-day work of all public bodies. Public bodies must have due regard to the need to:
- eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment, and victimisation
- advance equality of opportunity between different groups
- foster good relations between different groups.
Councils must publish:
- one or more equality objectives every four years
- information to demonstrate compliance with the equality duty each year
- information on their employees and others affected by their policies and practices.
Councillors are expected to understand the impact of cutting budgets and to mitigate potential negative outcomes, especially the cumulative impact on specific groups of people. Getting this right will ensure fairness and equality of opportunity for local people.
Councils have a critical role to play in reducing inequalities and enhancing inclusion and cohesion within their communities. The LGA’s equalities hub brings together the range of support and resources we have on equalities, diversity and inclusion (EDI), providing a central hub for officers and members to access tools to achieve their EDI objectives and meet obligations set out in the Equality Act 2010.