Stage 1: Scope of the Equality Impact Assessment
EIAs are designed to be proportionate and relevant and thus the time spent completing the EIA and the depth to which the questions are answered need to reflect the size and importance of what is being assessed
Your Equality Champion can help with completing the EIA if necessary, or guidance can be found in the Documents section of the Equality and Young People page on WySpace (via the Corporate tab)
1. What is being assessed? (Title or description of the policy, strategy, service, function (this includes reports to Cabinet as appropriate)).And who implements this policy, strategy, service or function?
On 12th December 2011 the Council transferred its housing landlord service to Red Kite Community Housing Limited. The reason for the transfer was to meet tenant aspirations for investment in their homes as confirmed in the positive ballot result from secure tenants and eligible leaseholders. It has therefore been necessary to review the way in which the Council delivers its retained housing service and monitors the delivery of the Transfer Contract by Red Kite.
2. What is the purpose? (A short statement about its aim or objectives)
The Council has retained the following Housing functions:
· Housing Options
· Development and Enabling
· Housing Strategy
· Ownership of temporary accommodation including Saunderton Lodge.
· Ownership of Rayners Avenue Mobile Homes Park
It was agreed by the Council’s Senior Management Board that these functions would be included in the Environment Service alongside the Private Sector Housing team, and that a separate service area would be established to cover all aspects of housing (i.e. the retained services post transfer and the private sector service currently located within Environmental Health) with a Service Manager to manage the service.
3. Who is affected? (The people it covers)
· Tenants and leaseholders – please see EIA relating to the stock transfer and its impact on users of the landlord service
· Applicants for housing and people seeking housing advice and assistance
· Residents of Saunderton Lodge and other temporary accommodation owned by either Red Kite or the Council
· Residents of Rayners Avenue Mobile Home Park
· Housing Options and Housing Strategy and Development Staff who have remained with the Council
· Staff in the private sector service
· Elected Members
· The wider community
4. Are there any other organisations involved in delivery? (Other agencies, Voluntary sector) If so, please list them.
· Department for Communities and Local Government and the Homes and Communities Agency
· Partner organisations, both statutory and voluntary (e.g. Bucks Mediation and Citizens Advice Bureau, Womens Aid & WRDGS etc)
· Registered Providers including Red Kite
· Partners in Bucks Home Choice
· Contractors providing services to both landlord and non-landlord services, whose contracts will be retained by the Council, with access to Red Kite for a limited period.
5. What are the external drivers for change? (i.e. Legal, National Policy, Partnership, etc)
Government policy on housing stock transfers, financial regulations governing local authority housing and the implementation of self-financing for council housing from April 2012 have provided an opportunity for tenants and leaseholders to determine the future ownership and management of the housing stock.
6. Does the service, or the way you implement it, affect the public, Members or staff directly?
· The work of the Housing Options and Private Housing teams directly affect people in housing need including homeless people, tenants of private rented housing, home owners, people suffering from domestic violence etc.
· Members are affected e.g. in representing residents in their wards.
· Staff in the Housing Options Housing Strategy and Enabling and Private Sector teams are affected by changes in the ways they carry out their work
7. Does it affect how other services are provided?
· Bringing together all the housing functions in one team will provide opportunities to improve services through closer collaboration.
· Tenants and leaseholders and future tenants will use Red Kite customer services instead of those provided by the Council.
· Service level agreements (SLAs) are in place for the first 12 to 24 months for some services to be provided to Red Kite by the Council, or to the Council by Red Kite.
· Liaison and monitoring of the SLAs and monitoring of the Transfer Contract will ensure continued collaboration between the Council and Red Kite for the benefit of service users.
· Applicants for housing may correspond with Red Kite rather than or as well as the Council in the early days until they understand who does what.
8. Is there information e.g. survey data or complaints that suggest that it is affecting particular groups of people? If so, how?
· Current tenants include a wide range of people including older people, people who have difficulties in understanding or reading English, and people with a physical or sensory disability and some of these may need help understanding what the changes mean for them. Staff will provide this help as necessary.
9. Does it have employment implications? (e.g. Recruitment policy)
· Following the transfer of the landlord function to Red Kite, Housing Options and Strategy & Development will remain with the Council and will be included in the Environment Service.
· Proposals concerning the Private Sector Housing and Public Health Team, Housing Options, Housing Strategy and Development and Environmental Health have been the subject of consultation. Staff have attended consultation meetings held on 31st October 2011 and 15th November 2011 and have received a letter and information on the proposed revised structure and the related measures.
· Responses received during consultation have helped to shape the future of the Housing Service. A response to the consultation has been provided to staff. The original proposals set out in the letter of 27th October 2011 have been revised to take account of the views of staff following consultation.
· No alternative proposals to deleting a post in Housing Strategy and Development were received during consultation. Where staff are at risk of redundancy suitable alternative work will be sought during a period of individual consultation.
· Where there are minor changes being made to job descriptions these will be discussed and shared with staff directly affected.
· One post will transfer from the Private Sector Housing Team to Environmental Health. Staff affected will be involved in the process.
· A portion of the work carried out by the Housing Options Assistants is transferring to Red Kite. Staff affected have been consulted and were offered an opportunity to be considered for the TUPE2 Red Kite post and one member of staff has transferred as a result.
If you have answered ‘yes’ to one or more of questions 6,7,8 or 9 you will probably need to carry out a full Equality Impact Assessment immediately.
10. Using the assessment in Questions 6-9 above, should a full assessment be carried out at this time?YES
11. If you have said NO what is the justification for your decision? (Please provide details. eg a top level assessment may need to be carried out now to meet Cabinet requirements but enough information for a full assessment isn’t available at this time). If so a due date for the completion of the full EIA MUST be provided
If the answer to Q10 is ‘yes’ continue with stages 2-4 . Head of Service sign off will be required after Stage 4 only and a Word electronic copy should be returned to the Equality Officer for publication.
If the answer to Q10 is ‘no’ the EIA will need to go through the challenge process to ensure that no further stages are required either at this time or ever, and needs to be sent to Claire Hook, Equality Officer for discussion and possible further explanation at . Then, if following the challenge process
a) it is agreed with the Equality Officer that no further Stages need to be completed the Head of Service needs to sign off the assessment (below) and return a Word electronic copy it to the Equality Officer for publication.
OR
b) it is agreed with the Equality Officer that Stages 2-4 need to be completed there is no need for Head of Service sign off until Stages 2-4 have been completed at which point a Word electronic copy should be returned to the Equality Officer for publication.
12. Who undertook this assessment?Name: Steven Tucker and Caroline Hughes
Job Title: Interim Head of Homes and Housing and Head of Environment
Phone: 01494 421601 and 01494 421701
Email:
This impact assessment was approved by the following Head of Service:
Name: Steven Tucker and Caroline Hughes
Service: Environment
Date: 27/07/12
Stage 2: Information Gathering: Service Users
What will the review or change to the Service / policy etc. currently being assessed do to:
eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation for any / all of the protected characteristics? (These are age, disability, gender, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation, marriage or civil p’ship, and pregnancy or maternity). Also bear in mind the impact on the needs of refugees and migrants where relevant. / .
advance equality of opportunity for any / all of the protected characteristics (as listed above) / Closer collaboration between the Housing Options and Private Sector Housing teams will provide opportunities to improve advice and information to people from all the categories.
foster good relations for any / all of the protected characteristics (as listed above) / No change.
2. Have you carried out work to identify the profile of your users or do you have information that describes the profile? (Please state the main sources of information you have used to map and understand the individuals and their needs, and what this has told you about them).
We collect a range of information around the protected characteristics through the choice based lettings process and homelessness process. We use this information to offer information in large print or audio formats, and translation or interpretation services where needed.
3. Please describe the groups and / or mechanisms you use to engage / consult with service users, as well as a summary of the consultation findings if applicable. (Also include any relevant consultations undertaken by other organisations involved in delivery (Stage 1 Q4)).
Please describe the groups and / or mechanisms you use to engage / consult with service users?
· Leaflets and the council’s website
· Bucks Home Choice website, with link from the council’s website.
· Bucks Home Choice information and newsletters offered in different formats where needed.
3a. Is this ongoing? (if not please give reasons why)
Yes
4. Have you done any work to understand the impacts of your service/ policy/ review on these user groups? This may include any consultation/ research / studies you have used.
(If ‘yes’ what has this told you)?
· Annual monitoring reports on housing applicants and allocations through Bucks Home Choice to identify any protected characteristics that may be under-represented, in order to review procedures and information to assist them.
· Annual monitoring of homeless applications to ensure that applicants from all protected characteristics are treated fairly in accordance with the council’s policy and the homelessness legislation and statutory guidance.
5. Is there any further consultation or research planned?
Yes. Annual monitoring of Bucks Home Choice and homelessness (see 2 above).
If ‘yes’, remember to include this as an action in Stage 4
6. If there are gaps in your knowledge are there any experts/relevant groups that can be contacted to get further views or evidence on these issues?
No gaps identified in relation to this EIA.
6a. If Yes, please list them and explain how you will obtain their views:
Remember to include contacting them, and (if relevant), the use of their views to determine actions in Stage 4
7. Do you need to carry out further research?
Not in order to carry out this restructure.
7a.If yes give details:
If ‘yes’, remember to include this as an action in Stage 4
Stage 2: Information Gathering: Staff
What will the review or change to the Service / policy etc. currently being assessed do to:
eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation for any / all of the protected characteristics? (These are age, disability, gender, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation, marriage or civil p’ship, and pregnancy or maternity). Also bear in mind the impact on the needs of refugees and migrants where relevant. / Staff will be treated in line with Equalities legislation and the relevant council policies including the equal opportunities policy.
advance equality of opportunity for any / all of the protected characteristics (as listed above) / No change
foster good relations for any / all of the protected characteristics (as listed above) / No change
2. Have you carried out work to identify the profile of your users or do you have information that describes the profile? (Please state the main sources of information you have used to map and understand the individuals and their needs, and what this has told you about them).
The profile of the 26 retained housing service staff is as follows:
Gender
Male / 23% / 6
Female / 77% / 20
Ethnicity
White British / 88% / 23
Other / 12% / 3
Disability / WDC figures only / 2.3% declared
Age distribution by age range
16 – 24 / 4% / 1
25-39 / 23% / 6
40-49 / 27% / 7
50-59 / 42% / 11
60+ / 4% / 1
Religion / Not collected
Sexual orientation / Not collected
Overall observations
An aging workforce – There is only 1 person in the retained housing service who is in the 16 – 24 years age range. 46% of the workforce is aged 50 or above.
Higher % of female employees to male but this is comparable with the gender profile of WDC and nationally.
Ethnicity - % is lower than the overall figure of the employees of the Council of 15% and marginally lower than the population of Wycombe district which is 12.1%
Disability – 2.3% of the Council employees have declared that they have a disability which is low compared with the County figure of 13% of people in Buckinghamshire who declare they have a long term disabling illness.
3. Please describe the groups and / or mechanisms you use to engage / consult with service users, as well as a summary of the consultation findings if applicable. (Also include any relevant consultations undertaken by other organisations involved in delivery (Stage 1 Q4)).
Formal staff consultation was carried out during October and November 2011. A consultation letter setting out the reasons for and the measures relating to the restructure was sent to staff on 28th October 2011, along with information on the proposed new structure for Environment and Housing. Consultation meetings were held with staff.
3a. Is this ongoing? (if not please give reasons why)
No. The restructure has been completed and the staff affected are working in line with their new roles. We have also commenced a new transformational project on Lean Systems Thinking which is engaging all staff in analysing and redesigning the core business process.
4. Have you done any work to understand the impacts of your service/ policy/ review on these user groups? This may include any consultation/ research / studies you have used.
(If ‘yes’ what has this told you)?
Staff have been consulted on the proposals for the retained housing service.
5. Is there any further consultation or research planned?
No
If ‘yes’, remember to include this as an action in Stage 4
6. If there are gaps in your knowledge are there any experts/relevant groups that can be contacted to get further views or evidence on these issues?
No
6a. If Yes, please list them and explain how you will obtain their views:
Remember to include contacting them, and (if relevant), the use of their views to determine actions in Stage 4
7. Do you need to carry out further research?
Not in order to carry out this restructure.
7a.If yes give details:
If ‘yes’, remember to include this as an action in Stage 4
Stage 3: Making a Judgement (Analysis): Service Users