
Dementia currently affects 1 in 14 people in the UK. Many people will either know someone with dementia, have had to support and care for someone with dementia or have been diagnosed themselves.
The killing of George Floyd and the support for the Black Lives Matter movement coupled with the disproportionate effects of Covid-19 on our BAME community, has demonstrated that our society is still one with deep divisions, inequalities and prejudices. We have come so far as a country with our anti-discrimination legislation and focus on diversity, but there is still a long way to go.
Principle 6 – what’s changed?
What has become clear is that diversity will only address certain issues; it may mean our organisations employ more people of colour, more people with a disability, different genders etc. However, it does not mean that those same people will be able to thrive and rise within the organisation. Identifying and removing those barriers and asking why someone of colour or with a disability or a woman is still statistically less likely to be a director or board member is inclusivity. Some of those barriers may be perception; there has never been a person of colour on the board of trustees before so employees or volunteers assume (wrongly) that it is not a role to which they should hope to aspire. Or alternatively, it may be more tangible barriers; trustees have always been picked according to a certain criterion which favours people with a certain educational background so excluding a diverse recruitment pool. This newly refreshed Principle 6 recognises the importance of inclusivity stating as one of its key outcomes that "obstacles to participation are reduced".
How does it benefit your charity?
A more diverse board is a more informed board and one that should make decisions that better reflect the variety of cultures, needs, opinions in our society that and encourage a greater level of engagement from staff. It sets the tone for the charity; a tone that says that we champion diversity and inclusivity, it is a key part of our culture and we want to be an organisation where there is no barrier to someone thriving.
How does it benefit the people who use or rely on your charity?
A more diverse board can better serve the purposes of the charity and the individuals it is seeking to help. A board that lacks any diversity will struggle to make informed decisions for the direction of the charity when our society and those the charity is seeking to support are diverse. Obviously, it may be impossible for a board to have a representative from each minority within our diverse society, however, having a board that is not monoculture or gender, one that champions diversity and inclusion and sets it as a key performance indicator is going to make more informed and ultimately wiser decisions.
How can Anthony Collins Solicitors help?
The employment and pensions team at Anthony Collins Solicitors can assist in implementing equality, diversity and inclusivity within your charity in accordance with Principle 6. We can offer the following;
For further information please do contact Anna Dabek in the employment and pensions team.
Dementia currently affects 1 in 14 people in the UK. Many people will either know someone with dementia, have had to support and care for someone with dementia or have been diagnosed themselves.
The 2022 Code replaces the NHF Code of Conduct 2012 (the 2012 Code) and sets out the baseline standards that the NHF expects of its member registered providers (RPs).
The High Court has dismissed a challenge by the Police Superintendents’ Association to the closure of legacy public sector pension schemes.
In my recent blog, I said that we would be issuing a series of ebriefings and blogs highlighting issues with the Procurement Bill. This is the first of these.
Contractors and delivery partners are facing a ‘perfect storm’ in many cases with a number of factors directly impacting upon the profitability of their work.
Worker status, like Piers Morgan, is one of those things that we think has gone away and then it pops up again!
We are seeing a steady trickle of decisions focused around the issue of flexible working requests or employer requirements for changes to working patterns (both pre and post the pandemic).
For those of us who have endured a choppy cross channel journey, the mention of P&O Ferries will invoke some nauseous memories.
Successive generations have witnessed seismic shifts in the workplace; post-war it was the return of the soldiers and the impact on working women who had to work in their place.
In this podcast, Puja Desai interviews Kimberley Foster and discusses her experience with counselling. This is a really helpful podcast for anyone who has thought about counselling.