Equality Action Plan 2021-2024

Access to Employment work package

Deliver employment academies in sectors focused on workforce demand (logistics, social care, child care, public sector), removing barriers to people furthest removed from the labour market to enter into or return to employment or advance in employment. (Annual programme)

• Percentage participating in Employment Academies
•  Percentage into employment

(Reviewed at key checkpoints in the year as the state of play within the labour market becomes clearer).

Develop a GIS monitoring approach to systematically assist programme development to continue to tackle inequalities in access to the labour market. 

• Effective monitoring mechanism established to better understand inequalities, and the needs of S75 groupings.
• Improve quality and quantity of monitoring information to support policy-making on Employability and Skills (retrospective measure)

Working with partners and stakeholders across the city to put in place an (enterprise framework) action plan which supports long term ambitions to increase the number of business start-ups, including targeting workless residents, females and young people and any under-represented groups

• Increase in percentage of participants from under-represented groups on enterprise awareness initiatives.
• Number of business starts.

• Use insights to inform programme design.

Deliver the Access and Inclusion Programme of capital enhancement projects to encourage engagement with culture, arts and heritage experiences (subject to funding).

• Number of small capital enhancement projects delivered.

Develop schemes to support higher participation and representation at cultural events by disabled people such as gig buddies.

• Number of events supported by gig buddies

• Number of participants

Development, publication and full public consultation of draft Social Value Policy

• Publication of finalised policy and guidance 

Deliver the Age-friendly Belfast Plan 2018-2021 assess achievements, identify challenges and develop a new Age-friendly Belfast plan 2022-2025

• Measure outcomes framework
• Consult with older people and stakeholders
• Review baseline information
• Develop new plan and begin to deliver in 2022

To be determined as part of the action plan development.

Develop a Sport and Physical Activity Strategy

To be determined as part of the action plan development.

To be determined following consultation with disability groups.

Achieve Onus Safe City status and retain platinum-level status

• Re-accreditation of Onus Workplace Charter Platinum-level
• Safe City Status achieved 

• Report on the review of existing process and the number of stakeholder organisations engaged for 2019/2020.
• Increase in choice of available Changing Places facilities across the city over the next 24 months.

Development of the new crematorium and our intention to acquire additional burial land, particularly for north and west of the city.

These are medium to long term projects. Time scales will be determined as the projects are developed.

To be determined as the project develops.

Develop a co-design approach to engage communities in social and community recovery planning.

To be determined as the approach is developed.

To be determined as the approach is developed.

Cultural mapping and understanding barriers (research and engagement) to support the delivery of capacity-building programme (with tailored strands including Section 75)

• Publish research document

Create an audience panel that contains a range of voices including those underrepresented in cultural engagement (proactively recruit those whose voices are not heard as often)

• Four focus group meetings a year held with audience panel 

To develop and deliver the next phases of the City Centre Connectivity Study (CCCS), that is to create a green, walkable, cyclable network of connected streets and places will:

• improve the health and wellbeing for all
• revitalise the city’s economy and
• restore a sense of collective pride in the centre of Belfast among the communities within and around it

City and Organisational Strategy

Co-design an Inclusive Growth City Charter in collaboration with our city partners which encourages or offers recognition for organisations that adopt business practices as employers, procurers or in the delivery of services which have been proven to create more inclusive economic growth

• A draft charter is finalised and publicly consulted on by April 2021.
• A final charter programme is launched and a range of businesses sign up by April 2022.

The charter actions and initiatives acknowledge the additional barriers many groups of citizens face in employment and are designed to mitigate against these barriers.

• A number of city partners/employers adopt more inclusive growth business practices.
• There is an increased awareness around the benefits of inclusive growth business practices among employers across Belfast, with sharing of best practice.
• Economic growth opportunities across the city are more accessible to all residents.

• Delivery of physical programme under the PEACE IV Shared Spaces and Services theme 

Build relationships across communities to increase confidence using and developing shared spaces and services

• Percentage increase in number of participants who feel safe attending event, activities, and facilities in areas associated with a different background

Help address issues of demarcation and division including flags, murals and other symbols

• Delivery of actions within Good Relations Plan working towards a Shared City vision

Design and deliver the Interfaces Programme

• Percentage increase in number of participants who feel safe attending event, activities, and facilities in areas associated with a different background.
• Contributions towards physical works and programming that encourage attitudinal change and a greater sense of belonging and social value.

• Development of a Decade of Centenaries (DoC) Programme based on the DoC principles on shared perspectives.
• Percentage increase in the number of participants who feel comfortable socialising in a shared space they would not normally visit

• Percentage increase in the number of participants who think the culture and traditions of Catholics, Protestants and minority ethnic people add to the richness and diversity of Northern Ireland society.

Development, publication and full public consultation of draft Local Policies Plan (LPP) [to include an Equality Impact Assessment, as well as a Sustainability Appraisal/Strategic Environmental Appraisal and Rural Needs Impact Assessment]

• Publication of finalised policies following independent examination

• Publication of finalised range of SPG policies 

• Number of engagement projects undertaken in collaboration with pre-engagement through the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise panel

Produce a consultation and engagement toolkit for officers

Provide ongoing advice and capacity-building

• Percentage of residents who agree that council consults with and listens to the views of local residents (survey in 2021 and 2023)

• Belfast Agenda dashboard updated.

Consultation and engagement give all people equal opportunity to participate 

Promote Inclusive Growth (IG) through the Belfast Region City Deal (BRCD) Action 1 over 10 years.

Develop clear and robust arrangements to monitor how well actions to promote IG through the BRCD are delivering. 

This will help us to report on progress at both a geographical and on a priority group basis to improve understanding of what types of interventions and policy changes work best in which circumstances and for which groups.

• Monitoring and evaluation arrangements in place and communicated to partners 

Promote Inclusive Growth (IG) through the Belfast Region City Deal (BRCD) Action 2 over 10 years.

• Deliver new and better jobs to the BRCD region and support the region’s economic recovery efforts.

This will be done in the context of IG and will include programmes and interventions to enable all groups, particularly those furthest from the labour market, to avail of the opportunities emerging through the capital investment.

• Establish an Employability and Skills programme to support the ambitions of the BRCD.

Develop, roll out and deliver new physical programme, £8m Neighbourhood Regeneration Fund, through an open call process. The fund will focus on key thematic areas and reflect the priorities agreed within the City Recovery Framework:

• environmental and sustainable projects
• neighbourhood tourism and
• social enterprise

• Number of projects completed, number of consultation exercises encompassing Section 75 groups

Delivery of Physical Programme including £180m Capital Programme for council assets. Management, development and delivery of externally-funded programmes such as the Executive Office’s flagship good relations programme Urban Villages, approximately £46million.

• Number of projects completed, number of consultation exercises encompassing Section 75 groups

• Developed understanding of impact of COVID-19 on existing inequalities

• Website to provide assistive technology and follow new and current plain English and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines AA Standards. 

Develop a new customer hub designed around customer needs

• New professional customer hub designed and implemented.
• Customer satisfaction with the hub service.

• Customers will have access to a point-of- service supported online resource within the hub and community centres.
• Number of customers moving to digital channels

• Percentage of issues understood impacting on different groups of people leading to a better informed decision-making process and improved customer service.  

• Greater opportunities for two-way communication using customer feedback tools and measures
• An accessible online service
• Translated documents of interest available on request

• Analyse feedback and develop an action plan to improve disability initiatives, where appropriate.

• Activity in plans agreed, resourced and delivered.

• Job opportunities ringfenced to the long term unemployed and targeted pre-recruitment and training.

• Three disability staff network meetings held each year.

• Improved promotion of our commitment to equality and diversity both internally and externally. 

• Hold event or workshop for both male and female staff to: explore and discuss diversity and gender issues and identify any areas or issues to be addressed.

• reasonable adjustments required by applicants as part of the recruitment and selection process
• gender identity
• sexual orientation 

• Voluntary monitoring exercise conducted and up- to-date information available.

• Silver Diversity Charter Mark achieved 

• Equality and Diversity Champions appointed

Number of sessions delivered

Training evaluation indicators:

• quality of training
• increased understanding
• increase in skills levels 

Number of sessions delivered

Training evaluation indicators:

• quality of training
• increased understanding
• increase in skills levels 

• Participation rates by gender, age, disability, race and community background. (Registrations on new platform)
• Assess seldom heard or other Section 75 participation rates as applicable.

Consultation and engagement give all people equal opportunity to participate.   

Research best practice and assess council’s engagement and participation of young people.

Develop best practice guidance for council officers.

• Production of guidance and case studies
• Evidence of improved or innovative approaches to engaging young people. 
• Percentage of young people who agree that council consults with and listens to the views of local residents (survey in 2021 and 2023)

City and Organisational Strategy

• Percentage attendance at each meeting from cross section of organisations and individuals.
• Percentage of staff and members who understand purpose of these networks and forums and find this useful.
• Effective feedback mechanism established and used by members  

• Number of standing panels. 
• Number of project specific panels and forums. 
• Number and type of panels involving targeted Section 75 or seldom-heard groups (per year)

• Annual compliance report to Equality and Diversity Network Strategic (EDNS)
• Number of complaints

Annual compliance report to EDNS

Number of complaints

• At least three meetings of both operational and strategic levels of the Equality and Diversity Network. 
• Completed audit of Section 75 processes.

Explore development of baseline of equality-related information for use by staff in all aspects of the council business

• Information of relevant equality data communicated to all staff and available to all staff.
• Access to equality data sets.

• Analyse feedback and develop action plans as appropriate.