Equality objective progress

Progress so far has included a broad period of consultation with officers who have used the impact assessment process before in order to establish how best to change the process in order to understand how to have a positive impact on citizens and mitigate any negative impact.

A new web-based tool has been created, using the expertise of both staff and service users to inform service delivery and accessibility. The tool will be used at the beginning of a process of changing services, starting projects or designing new strategies and procedures. It will then grow and develop as more stakeholder engagement takes place, and the project or service takes shape.

The consultation period highlighted that, in order to accurately assess the impact and then mitigate it, the entire process should include an enhanced support tool, with access to data and insight about the communities we work with, plus stories of the everyday experiences of citizens who access services. This is also in development.

To understand the impact of this priority action, indicators will include consideration of how negative impact is mitigated and how positive impact is generated for citizens. A quality assurance process will monitor how impact assessments change during the lifetime of a project, and look at how data and intelligence is used to support decisions appropriately and proportionately.

The design phase of the new Integrated Impact Assessment process is coming to a close ready for the new online assessment tool to be piloted by some departments in January 2023 before a full roll out across the organisation due in Spring 2023.

Kirklees was highlighted as a best practice model, at a conference in Baltimore, where a Project SEARCH programme specialist, told how attendees from Hawaii, Canada and Iceland had complimented Kirklees' presentation and praised the "fantastic work" of this “standout partnership".

The programme specialist made particular reference to the contribution of a Kirklees intern, who has now achieved his long-held ambition of becoming a bus driver. On successful completion of the training, which he found challenging but ultimately very rewarding, he said:

"I have been so lucky to have this privilege of working alongside people I now class as very close friends - in fact in most cases, we are more like a family! It really is an industry you can grow as an individual and shine in. You never have to work a day in your life if you enjoy your job - and I love mine!"

The impact of this priority action is already being felt. Last year's report noted that, in Kirklees, 9% of people with learning disabilities were in employment, against a figure of 6% nationally. As our first cohort completed the programme, this had risen to 11% in Kirklees, with a fall in the national average to 5%.

In addition to the high percentage of interns successfully moving into employment, the council's involvement in Project SEARCH, has allowed managers and job coaches to work collaboratively in devising new opportunities for engagement, with a section of community that have hitherto found it difficult to access employment. The success of the first year has led to increased engagement opportunities by council services, which bodes well for the future of the programme and interns' careers.

The 2022-23 cohort has now commenced, with an expansion, both in terms of the number of interns and services offering six-month placements (termed 'rotations'). Fourteen interns commenced the induction phase in September 2022, joined by a further two from the previous cohort, who still had to complete their final rotations. Nine new services - ranging from Customer Services and Parks and Gardens, to Policy and Human Resources - have joined those from last year in offering rotations.

This priority action has sustainability in mind, looking at how we can build on its success in future years and learn from the interns, as we strengthen support for neurodiverse staff and listen to feedback, to ensure that systems and procedures work for all.

To achieve this priority action, the 'Inclusion Learning Framework' has been developed. This is an overarching framework to help staff understand the wider context, consider where they are now and think about their needs and support, as they identify their own person-centred learning pathway, including self-reflection and signposting to the most relevant learning support, activities and resources.

The range of learning and development support available, comes under two main headings: 'Inclusion Essentials' and 'Inclusion Builders'. All staff should understand some core 'inclusion essentials' as a foundation and to regularly refresh their knowledge. These 'Essentials' provide a common platform to build on, then deepen our understanding and further explore different inclusion themes or topic areas (the 'Builders').

Staff are encouraged to reflect and improve, wherever they are on their inclusion journey. Using this framework will help colleagues to identify the most appropriate development for us to become more culturally confident, wherever their starting point. It provides a reference point to support learning and growth and helps ensure that inclusion becomes an everyday reality at work in Kirklees, no matter what our service or job role.

The 'Inclusion Learning Framework' launched during National Inclusion Week, in September 2022, with a series of 'GoLearn' blogs, to support staff to access the resources and a Kirklees-specific webinar, 'Creating an Inclusive Organisation', hosted by Inclusive Employers. Four additional webinars took place during autumn 2022, focussing on some of the 'Inclusion Builders' topics: Celebrating Neurodiversity at Work; Anti-Racism: Where Have We Been and Where Are We Going? Demonstrating Trans and Non-Binary Inclusion; and Tackling Ableism - Supporting Disabled Colleagues.

As the 'Inclusion Learning Framework' becomes embedded in the 'Learning and Organisational Development Programme' at Kirklees, plans are in place to incorporate it further into staff induction programmes as well as performance and development reviews.

Understanding what it means to be an ally, is a key aspect of Kirklees becoming a more inclusive organisation. Choosing to be an inclusion ally, is an active role that requires colleagues to listen, to learn (and unlearn) to change and take ongoing action.

This priority action, launched during National Inclusion Week, with a blog detailing what allyship is and can mean on a practical level. Colleagues were signposted to additional resources in the 'Inclusion Learning Framework' and advised about how to sensitively be an ally in the workplace and society more broadly.

The launch also featured a manager's experience of supporting a member of staff who is a working carer, explaining that allyship can take many different forms and that listening to colleagues' experiences and designing a work pattern and environment that works best for them, is allyship in action.

Following the launch of 'Inclusion Allies', work will now take place to broaden the reach of the employee networks, with clear communications about which events and activities are open to, or specifically targeted at allies.

The 'Inclusion Learning Framework' contains a series of resources for colleagues to understand the role in more detail. Self-reflection and discussion circles, will further help embed allyship as a core part of our inclusive workforce development.

• Over 870 health checks completed so far, a strong indicator that the pilot target of 1,000 completed health checks is within reach.
• 80+% of checks are showing abnormal results and have received appropriate follow up, next steps discussed or signposting.
• There is an even gender split, countering research prior to the pilot which showed that men were less likely to attend for a health check than women in the pilot age group.
• 24% of participants were of Indian or Pakistani ethnicity - again, another research target group.
• Activity to target Black, African and Caribbean (BAC) community groups and events, has shown a small but steady increase in health checks requested, by those identifying within those ethnicities.
• There was an even spread of checks delivered across all three Primary Care Networks areas, with a smattering of checks delivered to people attending outside of the pilot areas. Eligibility checks are made at the point of booking, through a series of filtering questions on our website: Health Checks | Kirklees Wellness Service.

• Over three hundred of those who attended, said they had not attended or had an invite for a health check previously, (however, they may have simply forgotten they had had one).
• Case studies and qualitative data gathered from health check recipients, highlights an appreciation of the opportunity to have a meaningful conversation about their health, one that motivated them towards health improvement actions and where they did not feel they were being, 'told what to do'.

From the start of the pilot, the project team tried to anticipate and unblock barriers to the delivery of pilot activity. One of the consistently upheld key aims, was to explore and experiment with new ways of delivering the health check, acknowledging that they would inevitably find ways that either worked or not and to learn from those experiences.

The appointment of the clinical lead role to the pilot, was instrumental in helping to provide clinical perspective, unblocking of barriers and mitigation of risks. As with any pilot project there are challenges and issues that are encountered, and this project was no exception.

All stakeholders are now open to ways in which we can work together, and GP involvement (as the key stakeholder) is critical to the development of future health check delivery models. This is a unique opportunity to do some important forward thinking, about an essential tool for the early detection of cardio-vascular and other diseases, as well as tackling health inequalities in Kirklees.

In October 2020, Conscious Youth (a Kirklees youth-led social enterprise) were awarded £50,000 by Kirklees Council, to develop 'Breaking Barriers'. The programme is aimed at black communities but remains open to all that are interested. Additionally, the grant was to act as seed funding, to help support the growth of Conscious Youth in securing public and private sector partners while developing a funding strategy and development plan.

Mary White, a Commissioning and Partnership Manager, in Children's Services, worked closely with Conscious Youth (Serena Johnson and Sophie Simpson) from July 2020 - Dec 2021. Progress against the grant was reported through to the 'Tackling Inequalities' Programme Board, the internal group which oversees delivery of projects outlined in the Inclusion & Diversity Strategy and develops connections to ensure a cohesive approach to tackling inequalities and inclusion.

The project included various events and activities, some of which engaged with huge numbers of participants, such as the 'Back to our Roots, Black History Month' programme of educational webinars, mini videos and live interviews. Over 43,000 people accessed the resources, 73% of whom were from Kirklees. Feedback from the 'Back to our Roots, Black History Month' Programme, showed that the audience found the material engaging, thoughtful and inspiring.

Kirklees Council seed funding enabled significant growth of Conscious Youth over the grant period. The organisation now employs both sessional staff and a part-time staff member to deliver youth projects. This in turn enabled senior staff to focus on strategic development, explore new income funding streams and develop the 'Breaking Barriers' Programme. The organisation has worked collaboratively with public, private and third-sector partners, to help further inform and support their work. Partners for this project now include: Amazon's Black Employee Network, NHS Huddersfield and Calderdale, Cummins Turbo Technologies, Transpennine Trains, Huddersfield New College, Kirklees College, North Huddersfield Trust, The University of Huddersfield, Ellis Campbell Foundation, C&K Careers, Kirklees Active Leisure (KAL) and the Paul Hamlyn Foundation.

As a result of receiving Kirklees Council's full support, Conscious Youth were able to attract other funders and stakeholders, which has enhanced their work and presented new opportunities. One such opportunity includes the opening of one of the first 'Places to Go', a quality, youth facility, in partnership with Kirklees Council. 'The Corner Hub', Market Walk, Huddersfield, opened in autumn 2022 and is a safe space for young people, including music, podcasting, youth engagement and space for other organisations to engage with young people.

At project close, Conscious Youth has delivered the majority of the expected outcomes. They have coped admirably with delays caused by lockdowns and illness.

The Leadership Programme has been developed and accredited, launching in Sept-Oct 2022. They have secured significant additional funding, partner support and new town-centre premises in Huddersfield, which will be a great 'Place to Go', when the refurbishment is completed.

It was led by ten Iroko ambassadors, members of the local black community, who used their local knowledge, lived experiences and relationships, to direct, guide and facilitate community engagement. They were supported by Kirklees Council and the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) specialists, Amber and Greene.

The project had three stages: #HearMyVoice (Community Engagement) #SupportMyVoice (Community Action Planning) and #GrowMyVoice (Community Capacity Building). In stage two, the key output was a co-produced, 12-month action plan, to implement tangible priorities as identified by the BAC community. The project built trust and confidence at each stage; it was co-productive, meaning the project was designed by the local black community, for the local community.

The Iroko Project has had a huge impact on the way we approach working with the BAC communities in Kirklees, which in turn has affected how we work with all communities in Kirklees. An internal ambassador for the Iroko Project said:

"The [Iroko] project will make a difference because it came out in the sessions quite clearly is that the communities now feel that the council are listening to them"

Praise for the Iroko Project has been widespread with colleagues sharing insights and advice on an international stage, at an Intercultural Cities Conference presentation, in May 2022.

Kirklees Council was highly commended in the Community Project of the Year category, at the British Diversity Awards in London, of which Councillor Pandor, Leader of Kirklees Council, said:

"I'm so proud that the Iroko project was highly commended for this award. There were some other excellent nominations for this category and to be nominated alongside them is a huge achievement.

"Iroko is one of the finest examples of collaborative work between the council and Kirklees communities I have seen during my time in local government. From the very beginning, Kirklees communities have been at the heart of the project, be that through becoming project ambassadors, sharing their lived experiences or contributing to the action plan.

"Iroko is an excellent example of the work we are doing to address the inequalities in society, but we've still got plenty of work to do. We must now continue to ensure we provide a pandemic recovery that leaves no one behind."

Linda Johnson, the member of staff who underpinned much of the work on the Iroko Project, went on to win the Public Service Award, at the Kirklees Diversity, Equality and Innovation Awards, in September 2022 and has also been nominated in the Hero of the Year category, at the European Diversity Awards.

A key part of the Iroko Project was to focus on sustainability. As the project was finalised, there was discussion about a second phase and of learning from the project, to move toward a new, 'Understanding and Working with Communities' project, as outlined in the Inclusion and Diversity Strategy.