Champion Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

1. Champion Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

2. Equality, diversity and inclusion are key components of contemporary practice and provide the foundations of good practice. • As managers it is vital to champion equality, diversity and inclusion

3. Equality • Different people have different needs and preferences. Equality is about treating people fairly and in accordance with their preferences and needs. It does not mean treating everyone the same and pandering to political correctness or prioritising one group over another without justification.

4. Diversity Diversity is about valuing individual difference. A diversity approach aims to recognise, value and manage difference to enable all to contribute and realise their full potential. Diversity challenges us to recognise and value all sorts of differences in order to make our environment a better place for everyone to live. Equality and diversity work together

5. Inclusion • Inclusion occurs when a setting embraces diversity and ensures that all children, young people and families are able to fully participate. • Inclusive practice promotes equality and supports diversity and should be evident in every setting.

6. Models of practice • You will need to consider: • Law and legislation – Children Act, UN Convention, Human Rights Act, Equality Act. • Policy and procedure • Models • Provision

7. Equality Act 2010 The Equality Act 2010 provides a new cross-cutting legislative framework to protect the rights of individuals and advance equality of opportunity for all. This helps to deliver a simple, modern and accessible framework of discrimination law which protects individuals from unfair treatment and promotes a fair and more equal society.

8. Protected Characteristics • Age • Disability • Gender Reassignment • Marriage and Civil Partnerships • Pregnancy and Maternity • Race • Religion and Belief • Sex • Sexual orientation

9. Nine pieces of legislation The Equal Pay Act 1970 Sex Discrimination Act 1975 Race Relations Act 1976 Disability Discrimination Act 1995 Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) 2003 Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) 2003 Employment Equality (Age) 2006 Equality Act 2006 (Part 2) Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) regulations 2007

10. Activity • Discuss barriers to equality, diversity and inclusion in your area of responsibility. • What would be the potential effects • What is the impact of legislation and policy initiatives on the promotion of equality, diversity and inclusion • What systems and processes can promote equality and diversity.

11. Why might some families not use a particular setting • Lack of awareness of facilities • Language differences • Cultural reasons • Financial constraints • Inconvenient session times • Disability (child or parent) • Transport difficulties

12. How can you make sure that you are implementing inclusive practice • By monitoring what is happening in your setting. • The monitoring process involves: • identifying an area of concern • collecting relevant data • analysing the data • acting on your findings, i.e. carrying out changes to make your practice more inclusive.

13. Collecting data • Admission data • Survey of parents • Record of who is using particular piece of equipment • Record of who participates in particular activities • Observation of particular children (time sample)

14. Analysing your data • You might follow up your analysis with further research, to find out why particular children are not attending your setting/ taking part in activities. For example: • Questionnaires • Interviews • Surveys • Informal discussions • Observations