Hope Community Immingham
Equality and Diversity Policy
Hope community is an outreach ministry with family and community at heart. We believe we are all part of Gods family, and we thrive to offer a welcoming environment where everyone can experience a sense of belonging and acceptance and be valued and respected as individuals. Through our activities, we put love in action to demonstrate the unconditional love that God has for each and every one of us so they can blessed by the love, kindness and compassion that is extended to them.
Aims of this policy
Hope Community Immingham recognises that in our society power is not held equally and that groups and individuals have been and continue to be discriminated against on many grounds, including due to the protected characteristics of; age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation. Groups and individuals can also be discriminated against for other reasons to, for example where they live.
Hope Community Immingham recognises that where discrimination occurs within our organisation and community, it is unacceptable.
This Equality and Diversity Policy is to set out clearly and fully outlines the positive action Hope Community Immingham intends to take to combat direct and indirect discrimination within the organisation, in the services it provides and in its relationships with other bodies.
In adopting this Equality and Diversity Policy, Hope Community Immingham is also making an unequivocal commitment to implementing it, so as to ensure that equal opportunity becomes a reality.
Types of Discrimination:
- Direct Discrimination – Direct discrimination is when an individual is treated differently and worse than someone else for certain reasons. The Equality Act says the individual has been treated less favourably.
- Indirect Discrimination – is when there’s a practice, policy or rule which applies to everyone in the same way, but it has a worse effect on some people than others. The Equality Act says it puts the individual at a particular disadvantage.
- Discrimination by association – This is direct discrimination against someone because they associate with another person who possesses a protected characteristic.
- Perception discrimination This is direct discrimination against an individual because others think they possess a particular protected characteristic. It applies even if the person does not actually possess that characteristic.
- Harassment is “unwanted conduct related to a relevant protected characteristic, which has the purpose or effect of violating an individual’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for that individual”. Harassment applies to all protected characteristics except for pregnancy and maternity and marriage and civil partnership.
- Victimisation occurs when an employee is treated badly because they have made or supported a complaint or raised a grievance under the Equality Act; or because they are suspected of doing so.
Hope Community Immingham Practice
Hope Community Immingham will try always to ensure that all activities and events are open and welcoming to everybody.
- We aim to make our meetings and events accessible to people with disabilities – e.g. meet in accessible premises, and produce information in alternative formats.
- We aim to use local opportunities to help our volunteers, reference group and members better understand how discrimination occurs and how to prevent it.
- All volunteers, sessional/self-employed workers and consultants of Hope Community Imminghamwill have the Equality and Diversity Policy explained to them, or a copy provided for them to read and understand, and will undertake to comply with and implement this policy.
- Currently Hope Community Imminghamdo not employ staff but if it were to in the future individuals who apply for a job role are assured that we are committed to equal opportunities at every stage of the application process. Hope Community Imminghamrefers to ACAS to ensure that the most up to date processes are followed http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1371
- Anybody who experiences discrimination within Hope Community Immingham can make complaints to the Chair of Trustees.
What we will endeavour to
In addition to the following our Code of Conduct Policy we will:
- Treat people with dignity and respect regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation.
- At all times value and respect people’s feelings. Language or humour that people may find offensive will not be used, e.g. sexist or racist jokes or terminology which is derogatory to someone with a disability.
- Class incidents of harassment and/or discrimination seriously. Our hope is that no one will be harassed, abused or intimidated on the grounds of his or her age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.
Dealing with Complaints
- The board of trustee will take complaints of discrimination and harassment very seriously.
- They will investigate them thoroughly, and provide opportunities for the person making the complaint to speak in a safe environment about their experience.
- If the complaint is against a particular individual the board of trustee will hear their point of view.
- If the complaint is against a member of the board of trustee, then a separate panel will be convened excluding that individual.
- The board of trustee directors will decide the action to take based on the principle of ensuring the continued inclusion and safety of any individual who has experienced discrimination or harassment.
- Any decision to terminate someone’s membership will be made in line with the rules set out in the memorandum of articles and association.
- Any decision to terminate an agreement with a sole trader/consultant or partner organisation will be made by a vote of the trustees.
- Any decision to ask a volunteer to stop volunteering will be made by a vote of the trustee directors
- Any decision to ask a participant not to attend further activity sessional will be made by a vote of the trustees
Review
This policy has been agreed by the trustees of Hope Community Immingham. The policy will be reviewed every 2 years.
Signed: Date:
