This policy of equality and diversity will benefit the individual and the whole organisation.
All Friends of Tawd Valley’s policies and practices will have equality at their core and the Trustees, staff and volunteers will ensure implementation of equality in practice. Services will be accessible to all those people who need our help on an equitable basis.
Friends of Tawd Valley is committed to challenging all forms of discrimination and unfair disadvantage in its working practices and acknowledges that diversity among members, volunteers and community brings positive benefits to the organisation.
Friends of Tawd Valley aims to provide equality of opportunity for all having contact with the organisation irrespective of their gender, race, colour, nationality, ethnic origins, age, disability, sexual orientation, HIV status, religious or political beliefs, marital status, parental or carer status, employment status, or any unrelated criminal offence.
Our policy commitment includes:
- Discouraging discrimination – individual and institutional, direct or indirect.
- Addressing misunderstandings regarding; disability, different groups in society thereby tackling racism, sexism, homophobia and ageism.
Friends of Tawd Valley aims to:
- Address the differing needs and expectations of volunteers and the local community.
- Ensure that our services are offered on a fair and equitable basis, are accessible, and are of high quality.
- Encouraged and value diversity in all our work.
We will constantly monitor and evaluate our policy and practice in order that we continually improve our practice to ensure best practice in diversity and equality.
Principles
Friends of Tawd Valley will not discriminate on the grounds of gender, marital status, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, HIV status, employment status, religious or political beliefs, parental or carer status or any unrelated criminal offence. (Specific justifiable exclusion criteria may apply to certain employment areas. These will be legal, open and service-related).
Friends of Tawd Valley will offer access to and provision of services on a fair and equitable basis that meet the individual needs of service users. Under-represented groups will be taken into account in the development of new services. Outcomes will be regularly monitored and evaluated.
Friends of Tawd Valley aims to be an equal opportunity employer and ensure that all those eligible to work for us have equal opportunities to do so on the basis of ability, qualifications and fitness for their role. This is achieved by implementing good employment practices. Every employee has responsibility for the implementation of the policy.
Friends of Tawd Valley is committed to developing an organisation in which all service users, workers and visitors enjoy equal rights. Sometimes the different rights and needs of different groups will appear to conflict. Reconciling these apparent differences is an important part of the equal opportunities policy and practice.
A variety of laws require Friends of Tawd Valley not to discriminate and the organisation aims to mirror best practice in implementing the Sex Discrimination Act 1975, the Race Relations Act 1976 and the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.
The principles in equality and diversity will be reflected in our practice relating to:
- Service delivery
- Employment
- Governance
- Partnership
Practice
Service Delivery
Services will be accessible to those who want them, within the constraints of available resources.
There will be fair access for everyone. Access will be interpreted widely to include physical access to buildings and services and the ability to gain information in different forms e.g. braille, tapes for visually impaired people and in different community languages.
Friends of Tawd Valley will give active support to service users to enable real involvement in service development and decision-making.
Where clients face harassment or discrimination in their community or from another service provider, Friends of Tawd Valley will support them and represent them if appropriate, in any action they may wish to take.
Friends of Tawd Valley will monitor and review all systems and procedures used in the provision of services to ensure equality of opportunity, responsiveness, sensitivity and accessibility.
Employment
Managers are responsible for the communication, promotion, implementation and monitoring of the equality and diversity policy in their service areas, including where appropriate, in the wider community. They will communicate the policy to staff; ensure that staff understand their responsibilities; ensure that no discrimination takes place and deal appropriately with any breaches. Managers must ensure that there is no scope for discriminatory practice.
Friends of Tawd Valley values its staff and will provide them with the skills and training to do their job well and the opportunities to progress in the organisation. Training and guidance to all employees will be provided to ensure that the commitment to equal opportunities is known and understood.
All employees have a responsibility to support colleagues in relation to the policy by raising concerns and fears through the appropriate channels. If any member of staff feels they have been treated unfairly they can contact their manager, or their Trade Union, all of whom are expected to take the grievances seriously, to treat information confidentially, investigate fully and ensure that no victimisation takes place.
There are a number of related policies, which also embody the principles of equality and diversity. These include: Dignity At Work, Whistle Blowing and the Professional Working Behaviour policies and Disciplinary & Grievance Procedures.
Governance
Friends of Tawd Valley will develop a governance structure that reflects the communities in which we work and ensure that the commitment to equality and diversity is reflected in the induction and training of trustees and committee members.
Trustees and committee members will actively demonstrate their understanding, belief and support of the policy through their communications and actions on behalf of the organisation.
Partnership
Friends of Tawd Valley will work with partners to develop good practice on issues of access.
Companies, individual consultants or contractors entering into contracts with Friends of Tawd Valley will be expected to comply with Friends of Tawd Valley’s equality and diversity policy.
Implementation
The Equality and Diversity policy will be linked to the Strategic Plan.
Friends of Tawd Valley’s Board will meet annually to ensure that access is embedded throughout the organisation, to monitor progress and to formulate further action points to deliver the objectives of the programme. The Board will focus on key areas although further areas may be identified on an ongoing basis.
- Service delivery
- Training
- Governance
- Accountability
- Recruitment and Workforce Profiling
Monitoring and Review
The Board of Trustees will monitor the overall success of the policy by assessing its impact on the organisation’s efforts to improve service delivery and employment practice, and will review progress in implementation annually, through monitoring the performance of operational services against targets.
The policy will be updated annually and changes will be communicated to all employees and service users as appropriate.
Time off for religious observance
Religious observance appliestoany religion, religious belief, or similar philosophical belief
Employees may require time off to observe a religious festival not covered by current statutory holidays, or for prayers. There is no express right to take time off in these circumstances and employers are not required to grant all requests for leave for religious observance. However Friends of Tawd Valley will consider time off to observe a religious festival not covered by current statutory holidays, or for prayers.
This policy was approved at the Friends of Tawd Valley committee meeting held on February 2022.
