Help us develop our new Equalities policy for Barnet - Phase 2

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This workshops have now been completed and we are using the findings to inform our draft EDI Policy.


Background

We want to involve a wide range of residents, communities and partners to help us develop and co-produce our new Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion Policy for Barnet.

With people of many cultural backgrounds, faiths and life experiences living side by side, one of Barnet’s biggest strengths is its richness of diversity. We want to create a place where people feel they belong, are respected, and accepted.

Our new Corporate Plan 2023 – 2026 sets out our priorities and ambitions for a borough where all residents can fulfil their potential and access the services they need in Barnet. As part


Background

We want to involve a wide range of residents, communities and partners to help us develop and co-produce our new Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion Policy for Barnet.

With people of many cultural backgrounds, faiths and life experiences living side by side, one of Barnet’s biggest strengths is its richness of diversity. We want to create a place where people feel they belong, are respected, and accepted.

Our new Corporate Plan 2023 – 2026 sets out our priorities and ambitions for a borough where all residents can fulfil their potential and access the services they need in Barnet. As part of delivering this ambition we are refreshing our Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Policy which was last updated in 2021.


How we plan to involve you

Our engagement programme has been spilt into two phases.

Phase 1:

Phase 2:

  • During Phase 2 we will be using your feedback from Phase 1 to help us develop our EDI policy priorities for Barnet.
  • We are recruiting to another series of workshops to gather your views on these emerging priorities and together co-produce our 2024 -2026 EDI Policy.


Registration to Phase 2 workshops has now closed.


How to register for our Phase 2 residents' workshops

Our Phase 2 residents' workshops will take place from mid- October to end of November 2023.

As an appreciation of your time we are also offering participants a £50 online shopping voucher.

Express your interest by completing our registration form:

  • registration for the workshops will be open until Sunday 12 November 2023
  • we will use the information submitted will help us ensure that a cross section of our residents are represented at the workshops
  • If you get allocated a place, we will contact you between Thursday 12 October and Tuesday 14 November 2023 with further details
  • if we are oversubscribed and you don’t get a place on this occasion, we will keep your details on file and aim to ensure you are invited to future events.

This workshops have now been completed and we are using the findings to inform our draft EDI Policy.

  • We asked, you said, we did

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    We asked

    We asked residents, community groups and wider partners to help us develop and co-produce our new Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Policy for Barnet. To build on the Phase 1 engagement in 2023, Phase 2 involved more focussed work to develop and test the emerging EDI priorities and objectives.


    You said

    Between September – December 2023, we delivered a series of workshops in collaboration with local groups. Over 80 people shared their views on the emerging EDI themes and priorities. Through this phase, we learned that residents wanted us to:

    • emphasise the understanding of residents’ individuality which includes their lived experiences
    • recognise differences not only between communities, but within communities
    • acknowledge that services are going to need to work harder to become more accessible
    • think about our community development offer
    • promote respect for all and foster togetherness in addition to celebrating diversity.

    We did

    We analysed the insights gathered and produced an EDI policy engagement (phase 2) report which included the following recommendations:

    Refine the emerging EDI themes and priorities

    • embrace the emerging themes and priorities, incorporating resident feedback to enhance comprehension e.g. outlining actions that will be taken
    • explicitly demonstrate how the themes and priorities are integrated into the overarching Corporate Plan priorities.


    Create a unifying EDI vision

    • develop a concise and easy to understand EDI vision
    • ensure the vision is adaptable, allowing for varied articulations while maintaining a strong unifying message.


    Follow inclusive language principles

    • demonstrate that consideration of diverse perspectives and outline guiding principles in the use of collective terms to foster transparency and understanding.


    We are now developing our new external, community focussed equalities policy. An equalities update report will be reviewed by the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 5 March. The EDI Policy is due to be finalised in summer 2024.