Equality and Diversity in Housing
"An equal society protects and promotes equality, real freedom and substantive opportunity to live in the ways people value and would chose, so that everyone can flourish."An equal society recognises people's different needs, situations and goals and removes the barriers that limit what people can do and be."
(The above are quotes from a Communities and Local Government Publication)
Liverpool is a diverse city. It is home to people from a wide range of different racial and cultural backgrounds, people with different religious beliefs, disabled people, children and older people, women and men, people who are heterosexual and lesbians and gay men. We value this diversity and think it is more important to celebrate and embrace the different contributions, perspectives and experience that people in our community have.
We also recognise that each person has different experiences. Some people experience disadvantage, and some groups of people tend to experience more discrimination than others.
Deprivation can affect all local communities, but problems associated with deprivation and exclusion are most acute among particular groups - such as high rates of unemployment among young and older people, the risk of crime in particular neighbourhoods, and poor health in some of our communities. We recognise that discrimination can often occur on the basis of ethnic group (race), gender, disability, sexual orientation, age or religion.
Equality, diversity and good relations are important for housing because:
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Being aware of and proactive about the diversity of customers will ensure that housing organisations are able to provide the right services and meet the right needs
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Embracing diversity in the workforce helps housing organisations recruit the best talent available
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Housing organisations have to comply with the law on equality and diversity issues and meet the demands of social housing regulators
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A positive approach to diversity will promote understanding and good relations between people who have different backgrounds and experiences and this enhances the quality of life in local areas.
In 2010 a new Equality Bill will come into effect, bringing together different strands of diversity within one piece of legislation. It is widely expected that the legislation will introduce a single equality duty (to promote equal opportunities), which will require public bodies to plan for the diverse needs of their workforce and the communities they serve - this will extend the duties contained in current legislation for gender, race and disability to also include age, sexual orientation, religion or belief, transgender and socio-economic disadvantage.
Liverpool City Council will work with Registered Social Landlords and other partners and stakeholders to promote Equality and Diversity for all residents in Liverpool, by providing services that recognise, involve and respond to the diverse range of customer (and employee) needs and aspirations, thereby improving the likelihood of equal life opportunities.
In Liverpool there is an Equalities in Housing Working Group and a Black and Racial Minorities Working Group that report to Liverpool First for Housing, Liverpool's Strategic Housing Partnership. For further information on this or any of the above, please contact Barbara Burke (email: Barbara.Burke@liverpool.gov.uk / tel: 0151 233 2956).
To ensure that this vital area of work is mainstreamed, the strategy for equalities in housing forms part of the main Housing Strategy document.