Council proposals put equality at its heart
Dudley Council’s cabinet will review the authority’s new equality strategy when it meets next week.
The new strategy sets out the local authority’s vision for putting equality at the heart of everything it does and reflects findings from a recent independent review into the council’s provision for equalities.
It pledges a greater focus toward its public equality duties as a service provider, an employer and as a hub for community leaders.
It also reflects recommendations from an independent review into race equality across the council undertaken by equalities charity BRAP in 2021, with findings being used to bring about positive change to people who work in the authority.
Once approved, commitments within the strategy will be realised through an annual delivery plan overseen by the corporate equalities board.
Councillor Patrick Harley, leader of the council, said:
We are rightly putting equality and inclusion at the heart of the work we do.
Once approved, this strategy will give us a strong focus for delivering on our equality priorities.
It will also focus on our work to create a safe and inclusive workplace that reflects the diverse community we serve, while integrating our equality objectives into commissioning and procurement of services.
We will ensure those working at Dudley Council are confident to stamp out racism at all levels and we have signed up to the ‘race at work charter’, which is designed to improve the experiences and outcomes for BAME employees.
11.9 per cent of Dudley Council’s workforce are from BAME backgrounds, which is roughly in line with the most recently available Census data for the local population.