BELFAST METROPOLITAN COLLEGE
POLICY SCREENING DOCUMENT
Background
Under Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998, the FE Sector is
required to have due regard to the need to promote equality of
opportunity:
 between persons of different religious belief, political opinion, racial group,
age, marital status or sexual orientation;
 between men and women generally;
 between persons with a disability and persons without; and,
 between persons with dependants and persons without.
Without prejudice to the obligations set out above, the FE Sector is also
required to have regard to the desirability of promoting good relations
between persons of different religious belief, political opinion or racial
group.
Belfast Metropolitan College’s (Belfast Met) 2nd Generation Equality Scheme
was approved by the Equality Commission in January 2012. The College is
committed to equality screening all policy decisions
Screening
‘The College uses the tools of screening and equality impact assessment to
assess the likely impact of a policy on the promotion of equality of opportunity
and good relations.
In the context of Section 75, ‘policy’ is very broadly defined and it covers all the
ways in which we carry out or propose to carry out our functions in relation to
Northern Ireland. In respect of this Equality Scheme, the term policy is used for
1
any (proposed/amended/existing) strategy, policy initiative or practice and/or
decision, whether written or unwritten and irrespective of the label given to it,
eg, ‘draft’, ‘pilot’, ‘high level’ or ‘sectoral’.’
Completion of this equality screening exercise will lead to one of the following
three outcomes:
1. the policy has been ‘screened in’ for equality impact assessment
2. the policy has been ‘screened out’ with mitigation1 or an alternative policy
proposed to be adopted
3. the policy has been ‘screened out’ without mitigation or an alternative
policy proposed to be adopted.
Screening Date:
30 January 2012
Screening Outcome:This policy has been ‘screened out with mitigation’.
Mitigation – Where an assessment (screening in this case) reveals that a particular policy has an adverse impact on
equality of opportunity and / or good relations, a public authority must consider ways of delivering the policy outcomes
which have a less adverse effect on the relevant Section 75 categories.
1
2
Information about the policy
Name of the policy
Reorganisation of Belfast Met Support Functions
_______________________________________________________
Is this an existing, revised or a new policy?
New
_______________________________________________________
What is it trying to achieve? (intended aims/outcomes)
Belfast Met is undertaking a redesign of its organisational support
structure by defining a “fit for purpose structure” which fully supports
and meets the needs of its students in the delivery of a curriculum
that is aligned to the vision, mission and strategy of the College, has
economic relevance and is matched to funding availability and within
the financial constraints of the College. In so doing, it is further
determined that the new structure will meet the requirement of
reducing costs. This will have a direct impact upon the staffing
structure across all levels of the support functions of the organisation
and may result in redeployment, retraining or workforce reductions.
The reorganisation programme will deliver a fit for purpose structure
within Belfast Met, putting in place a support function that is
appropriately sized with the right mix of skills, knowledge and
capability in order to enable the College to deliver its key priorities
and objectives and support the delivery to our learners.
It is anticipated that the benefits of doing this are:
A reduced establishment of staff which are nevertheless able to
deliver the right results, making Belfast Met a great place to work
where all staff have greater accountability and responsibility for their
own work and decision making.
The purpose of the competency based selection process is to
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populate the new organisational structure.
_______________________________________________________
Are there any Section 75 categories which might be expected to
benefit from the intended policy?
If so, explain how.
Not specifically.
An efficiency review in 2008/09 ordered by the Department for
Employment and Learning (DEL) reported that the College was in a
critical financial position and a recovery plan was necessary to
address all aspects of College performance. The recovery plan
referred to as the College Improvement Plan (CIP) which was
published in late 2010, set out a series of recommendations to return
the College to financial stability over a three to five year period and
covered all aspects of College service. Fundamental to the recovery
was a review of the curriculum offer, a rationalisation of teaching
hours to address the vast underutilisation of lecturing staff, a
complete review of management in the College and complete review
of future organisational arrangements to ensure a fitness for purpose
structure. The decision to reorganise the support function is part of
the overall restructuring of the College and comes as phase 2, the
College having implemented a reorganisation of management and
academic staff in phase 1 during the academic year 2010/11. The
decision as to how the reorganisation takes place has now been
established and set out in a Principles and Protocols document 6
October 2011. This document makes specific references to the
importance of compliance with equal opportunities and has identified
the importance of continued dialogue with particular groups (e.g.
females on maternity leave) who may not have access to the same
communication channels. It is also noted that those on maternity
leave during a potential redundancy process are afforded the
additional protection in law as contained in the SDO. Furthermore
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the College is fully committed to meeting all of its obligations with
regard to those employees who have a disability as defined under
the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA).
On the release of the new proposed structures, staff will be notified
and a process of both collective and individual consultation will be
undertaken.
The following potential range of scenarios will then be possible
depending on the individual circumstances of the post and post
holders:A member of staff may be assimilated into a post in the new
proposed structure if the role is determined as like for like in all
aspects of the duties, this also will include the grade and the same
terms and conditions.
Where a new role is determined in the proposed new structure and
current posts are identified as no longer required by the organisation,
a determination will be made by the College as to whether or not
affected staff are identified as belonging to a ring fenced trawl for the
purposes of the potential population to a new post. Where there are
more potential members in a ring fenced trawl verses the number of
new posts available, affected staff will be required to go through a
competency based assessment process to demonstrate their
competence for the job and determine population to the new posts.
In some circumstances where there may not be more persons in the
ring fenced trawl for a vacancy(s), it may still be determined
necessary by the college that a competence based assessment
process is required because the new post is different in the duties
and/or delivery.
An assessment process may take the form of an interview and/or
practical/written assessment. In the main, interviews will only to
used if decisions cannot be made on paper based assessments.
This will allow the process to be completed to a shorter timescale
and will minimise stress for participants.
Where a current post holder(s) has no equivalent or broadly similar
post identified in the new structure, then they will be provided with
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options for their consideration to include applying for Voluntary
Redundancy (VR) under the College’s VR Scheme, or redeployment
into suitable alternative or alternative employment.
Vacant posts in the new structure will, in the first instance, be placed
in the “redeployment pool” for the initial consideration of those
individuals “at risk” of redundancy who are in the redeployment pool.
If a vacancy still exists after being fully considered by all those in the
redeployment pool, it will then be internally trawled to employees of
the college. Only when these two avenues for population have been
exhausted, will a vacancy be externally advertised.
It is likely that there will be opportunities for promotion for some staff
through this competitive selection process.
Staff deemed unsuccessful following the selection process will also
be placed in the redeployment pool and subject to the same
redeployment process.
At the end of the process staff who cannot be redeployed will be
considered for voluntary redundancy prior to the last resort of
compulsory redundancy.
An enhanced voluntary redundancy compensatory package has
been secured by the college for the period of the planned
programme in phase 2 i.e. up until 31st August 2012 for which any
member of staff can apply regardless of age. The VR package
offered is in keeping with that specified in the Redundancy Policy
used by all colleges which has already been the subject of an
Equality Screening process. It is recognised that in the current
financial climate and in the context of the college’s poor financial
situation as well as the overall public sector agenda that value for
money considerations may influence choices on selection for exit
schemes, which may result in more older people remaining in the
selection pool. Conversely, younger people may have opportunities
which they might not otherwise have had
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_______________________________________________________
Who initiated or wrote the policy?
The policy was initiated by the Governing Body of the College who
charged the Chief Executive with the implementation of the policy.
Structures were set up within the College in the form of a Change
Management Team (CMT) to oversee the full implementation of the
CIP including reorganisation. Membership of this team include the
Chief Executive, a Deputy Director for Change Management, the
interim Finance Director (later replaced by the Chief Operating
Officer on her return from maternity leave) and a Human Resources
(HR) Change Management lead, seconded from a local business for
the duration of the reorganisation project. The Principles and
Protocols document was written by The HR Change Management
Lead and approved by the CMT leadership group. The document
which sets out the guidance on the principles that the College will
follow and the process for reorganisation, was consulted upon with
the recognised Trade Unions during a 90 day statutory collective
consultation period which ended in January 2011. The CMT were
also supported by the engagement of a consultant to support the
reorganisation process including the development of processes
which were fair, were consistent with the organisation’s requirement
to achieve a fit for purpose structure with the appropriately skilled
employees in post. The structure needed to be achievable and one
which would not incur significant legal risk, would comply with
legislation and would afford employees the fairest opportunities
within the process whilst still protecting their individual employment
rights. The Principles and Protocols document was subsequently
agreed with Trade Unions.
_______________________________________________________
Who owns and who implements the policy?
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Belfast Metropolitan College owns the policy.
Given the scale of the programme, the interdependencies between
curriculum and support function and the extent of change required,
new governance and implementation structures in the form of a
Project Management Group have been defined by the HR Project
lead for this phase.
The Project Management Group will have the following resources
allocated to implement and deliver the reorganisation project.
Project Board – College Executive team who will manage by
exception
Project Sponsor –Chief Operating Officer
Project Manager HR Lead Change Management
Core Project team to include the project manager and the interim
Head of HR, the Head of Corporate Development, A project coordinator and a project control officer. Co-opted members of the
team will include the Assistant Chief Executive, the Director of
Development and Learner Services, the Head of Finance, The Head
of Learner Services, the Head of Estates, the Head of Business
Development, the Employee Resourcing Service Manager and the
Head of Business Improvement.
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Implementation factors
Are there any factors which could contribute to/detract from the intended
aim/outcome of the policy/decision?
If yes, are they
X
financial
X
legislative
X
other, please specify:-
The implementation of the Principles and Protocols document must have due
regard to the college’s statutory obligations to its staff and students and
therefore, in application, must not adversely affect any particular group.
The following factors could contribute to, or detract from, delivery of the
outcomes and success measures:



Lack of resources to support the project.
Tight timescale.
Proposals being challenged.
Milestones delayed for a number of reasons eg absence, urgent issues
arising.
 Accuracy of information provided to HR.
 Selection timelines not being met.
 Information incomplete or missing.
Main stakeholders affected
Who are the internal and external stakeholders (actual or potential) that the
policy will impact upon?
X
staff
X
service users
X
other public sector organisations
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X
voluntary/community/trade unions
X
other, please specify:- Agency staff; families and dependants.
Other policies with a bearing on this policy
Redundancy Policy/Voluntary Redundancy
Job Share Policy
Flexible Working Policy
Who owns them?
The College’s Governing Body owns all policies
It should be noted that the Redundancy and Job Share Policies are Northern
Ireland FE Sector Policies which are regionally negotiated by the relevant
negotiating committees. Policies when agreed through these committees are
issued by the Colleges’ Employer Forum to all FE Colleges in Northern Ireland
following consultation with the recognised Trade Unions.
The flexible working policy and implementation procedures are unique to Belfast
Met but have been locally negotiated and agreed with the local support staff
trade unions.
The VR enhanced compensatory package has been regionally agreed between
all of the FE Colleges in Northern Ireland and approved by the Department for
Employment and Learning.
Available evidence
Evidence to help inform the screening process may take many forms. Public
authorities should ensure that their screening decision is informed by relevant
data.
What evidence/information (both qualitative and quantitative) have you gathered
to inform this policy? Specify details for each of the Section 75 categories.
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The process for reorganising and redeploying staff which involves competency
based assessment is a widely used methodology and recognised as an
effective tool for organisational recruitment. It has been determined by the
college as its chosen methodology because it provides for:
 Improved objectivity, leading to truer talent acquisition
 Consistency in hiring decisions
 Legal protection for the employer
Leadership/Management competencies have been published for information so
staff can be made familiar with the generic requirements for management
grades and in due course prior to the implementation of the support staff
reorganisation, a general college competency framework will be published. As
part of the population process for each post, the relevant competencies for the
effective performance of each post will be released. As the process of
reorganisation goes forward relevant competencies will be provided to staff in
advance of any competency based assessment process. Competency based
assessment will take a variety of formats and staff will be notified in advance of
the nature of the assessment which could include practical methodologies
directly linked to the day to day work and requirements of the post or scenario
based situations.
Section 75
category
Details of evidence/information
Religious
belief
The College monitors all full time and part time staff
by community background and religious belief. The
information on Community Background tends to be
more comprehensive than the religious belief
category as the latter is given voluntarily.
Political
opinion
The College monitors all full time and part time staff
by political opinion.
Racial group
The College monitors all full time and part time staff
by ethnicity. This information is also given on a
voluntary basis so is not always completed.
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Age
The College monitors all full time and part time staff
by age.
Marital status The College monitors all full time and part time staff
by marital status.
Sexual
orientation
The College monitors all full time and part time staff
by sexual orientation. However this information is
not always provided by staff.
Men and
women
generally
The College monitors all full time and part time staff
by gender.
Disability
The College monitors all full time and part time staff
by disability. Staff appear reluctant to disclose this
information however the College is attempting to
encourage disclosure.
Dependants
The College monitors all full time and part time staff
by dependants.
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Needs, experiences and priorities
Taking into account the information referred to above, what are the different
needs, experiences and priorities of each of the following categories, in relation
to the particular policy/decision? Specify details for each of the Section 75
categories
Section 75
category
Details of needs/experiences/priorities
Religious
belief
The support grades are equally balanced between
those whose community background is Roman
Catholic and those who are from a Protestant
tradition. Only 9% of staff fall outside this.
There is no evidence to suggest that there are any
specific issues in respect of this category within the
context of this Policy.
Political
opinion
Although 70% have not disclosed their political
opinion, there is no evidence to suggest that there
are any specific issues in respect of this category
within the context of this Policy.
Racial group
Belfast Met use the 2001 census categories to
record racial group details. We do not hold ethnicity,
nationality or first language details. Consequently,
the racial group information does not enable the
College to identify the ethnicity or nationality of an
employee. Our data would suggest that we have
98.5% staff who are white, 0.5% Indian, 0.5% Chinese
and 0.5% of staff have not disclosed. Although
accurate in terms of racial group more staff are
employed by us who might for example be ‘white’
but come from countries whose first language is not
English e.g. Poland. Although there is no evidence
to support the notion that the use of a competence
based system may have an adverse impact on this
group as they are perhaps not familiar with the
terminology or process, it none the less is an
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acknowledged consideration during the assessment
process.
It should be noted however that the introduction of
competency based assessment has been regarded
as an effective method of removing the potential
flaws in more traditional recruitment &
selection/appointment processes and in particular
this has the effect of removing bias based decisions
that can impact negatively on minority groups.
Age
The age profile for staff in the support grades is as
follows:21 – 30 10%
31 – 40 22%
41 – 50 32%
51 – 60 30%
61+
6%
As competence based selection is not a
methodology that the college has used prior to this
reorganisation, this will be a first time for all staff
regardless of age category.
Whilst there is no age criterion set for VR it may
advantage those with more service therefore there is
likely to be a higher uptake of those in the higher
age bands. That said not everyone in the higher age
bands will have long service as some staff have
joined the college from other organisations.
Marital status The majority of staff are married/in civil partnerships
or co-habiting i.e. 53% with 30% of staff single. 2.5%
of support staff are divorced/dissolved and .5% are a
widow or widower.
There is no evidence to suggest that there are any
specific issues in respect of this category within the
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context of this Policy.
Sexual
orientation
50% of staff have declared their sexual orientation.
Of that figure 49% are heterosexual, .3% are Gay,
.5% are bisexual and .3% are Lesbian
There is no evidence to suggest that there are any
specific issues in respect of this category within the
context of this Policy.
Men and
women
generally
Majority of support staff (65%) are female.
Disability
There is a general reluctance amongst staff to
declare their disability. This trend is visible in the
figures for the support staff with only 5% of staff
declaring a disability. The college is seeking to
address this disclosure issue.
There is no evidence to suggest that there are
specific issues in respect of this category within the
context of this Policy, however some staff have
adjusted their hours to manage family commitments
under the Colleges family friendly policies. Most of
these staff are female. During the assessment
process, the CMT will have due regard to the needs
of staff who work flexible hours and also their
population to part time posts in the new structure.
Dependant on the disability staff may need
additional time for competence tests and additional
support to help understand the process. The College
has already made any necessary adjustments for
specific need during the implementation of phase 1
of the reorganisation. Where a disability is declared
or known by the college, if it has not already been
carried out, a “needs assessment” will be
undertaken by specialist practitioners to determine
what additional support or reasonable adjustments
are necessary. Accessible locations are generally
provided for tests and interviews.
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Dependants
Monitoring data with regard to dependency would be
unreliable as only 3% of staff have declared caring
responsibilities.
All posts are based in the Belfast area therefore any
reorganisation resulting in a move to a different
campus location should not cause issues. Family
friendly policies resulting in changes to working
patterns are in place in the College which will allow
for consideration of individual circumstances. There
is also a policy for flexible working which allows
staff with additional needs for school aged
dependents to be accommodated and a flexi-time
system. The College may during the course of its
reorganisation determine that as a result of business
need that a post cannot be performed effectively
other than on a full time basis. Where this has the
effect of impacting on a member of staff, the college
will make every effort to accommodate individuals in
other parts of the organisation.
A summary of the monitoring data for support staff is attached at
Appendix A.
Part 2. Screening questions
Introduction
In making a decision as to whether or not there is a need to carry out an
equality impact assessment, the public authority should consider its answers to
the questions 1-4 which are given on pages 66-68 of this Guide.
If the public authority’s conclusion is none in respect of all of the Section 75
equality of opportunity and/or good relations categories, then the public
authority may decide to screen the policy out. If a policy is ‘screened out’ as
having no relevance to equality of opportunity or good relations, a public
authority should give details of the reasons for the decision taken.
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If the public authority’s conclusion is major in respect of one or more of the
Section 75 equality of opportunity and/or good relations categories, then
consideration should be given to subjecting the policy to the equality impact
assessment procedure.
If the public authority’s conclusion is minor in respect of one or more of the
Section 75 equality categories and/or good relations categories, then
consideration should still be given to proceeding with an equality impact
assessment, or to:
 measures to mitigate the adverse impact; or
 the introduction of an alternative policy to better promote equality of
opportunity and/or good relations.
In favour of a ‘major’ impact
a) The policy is significant in terms of its strategic importance;
b) Potential equality impacts are unknown, because, for example, there is
insufficient data upon which to make an assessment or because they are
complex, and it would be appropriate to conduct an equality impact
assessment in order to better assess them;
c) Potential equality and/or good relations impacts are likely to be adverse or
are likely to be experienced disproportionately by groups of people
including those who are marginalised or disadvantaged;
d) Further assessment offers a valuable way to examine the evidence and
develop recommendations in respect of a policy about which there are
concerns amongst affected individuals and representative groups, for
example in respect of multiple identities;
e) The policy is likely to be challenged by way of judicial review;
f) The policy is significant in terms of expenditure.
In favour of ‘minor’ impact
a) The policy is not unlawfully discriminatory and any residual potential
impacts on people are judged to be negligible;
b) The policy, or certain proposals within it, are potentially unlawfully
discriminatory, but this possibility can readily and easily be eliminated by
making appropriate changes to the policy or by adopting appropriate
mitigating measures;
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c) Any asymmetrical equality impacts caused by the policy are intentional
because they are specifically designed to promote equality of opportunity
for particular groups of disadvantaged people;
d) By amending the policy there are better opportunities to better promote
equality of opportunity and/or good relations.
In favour of none
a) The policy has no relevance to equality of opportunity or good relations.
b) The policy is purely technical in nature and will have no bearing in terms
of its likely impact on equality of opportunity or good relations for people
within the equality and good relations categories.
Taking into account the evidence presented above, consider and comment on
the likely impact on equality of opportunity and good relations for those affected
by this policy, in any way, for each of the equality and good relations categories,
by applying the screening questions given overleaf and indicate the level of
impact on the group i.e. minor, major or none.
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Screening questions
1 What is the likely impact on equality of opportunity for those affected
by this policy, for each of the Section 75 equality categories?
minor/major/none
Section 75
category
Details of policy impact
Level of impact?
minor/major/none
Religious
belief
No issues in respect of this category
None
Political
opinion
No issues in respect of this category
None
Racial group
The use of assessment centres and
to a lesser degree interviews, may
potentially impact on some staff
whose first language is not English
although there is no evidence to this
effect. Staff whose first language is
not English may not have the ability
to articulate their competence as
easily as those whose first language
is English. Equality data does not
record first language however in
mitigation a member of staff who
may be affected and required to go
through the assessment process can
be identified early and supported. In
terms of ethnicity only 2 members of
staff are not white however not
everyone who is white has English
as a first language.
Minor/None
To mitigate any adverse impacts the
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competencies for each post will be
provided to staff in advance to help
them prepare and clarification can be
sought from the Change
Management Team at any stage
prior to the assessment. The testing
methods used will be practical and
job related so it is anticipated that as
staff will already be familiar with the
job related assessment, language
barriers should not present a
problem.
Age
The use of assessment centres in
Minor
particular but also possibly (and to a
lesser degree) interviews, could
potentially impact on staff not familiar
with a competence based approach
to selection or assessment centres.
To mitigate any adverse impacts the
competencies for each post will be
provided to staff in advance to help
them prepare and clarification can be
sought from the Change
Management Team at any stage
prior to the assessment. The testing
methods used will be practical and
job related so it is anticipated that as
staff will already be familiar with the
job related assessment, language
barriers should not present a
problem.
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Marital status
No evidence to suggest that there
are any particular issues with this
category in respect of this policy
decision.
None
Sexual
orientation
No evidence to suggest that there
are any particular issues with this
category in respect of this policy
decision.
None
Men and
women
generally
65% of support staff are female and
whilst there are no specific issues
between genders this category also
links with dependents. A number of
female staff have adjusted their
working patterns to accommodate
family commitments under the
college’s flexible working
arrangements.
Minor
The College also operates a flexi
time policy for support staff which
allows them to start work later in the
morning or finish earlier in the
afternoon. This facilitates those with
dependants or caring responsibilities.
Both policies will still be applicable
under the new structure .Whilst
business needs are paramount the
policies afford a level of flexibility.
Disability
Only 5% of staff in the support
function have declared a disability.
However, we do not believe this to
None
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be the actual position.
Not all staff with a declared disability
will be affected by the outlined
process as some will be mapped
across to their existing posts. Each
case will be dealt with separately and
to ensure that reasonable
adjustments continue in the new job
role.
Dependant on the disability staff may
need additional time for competence
tests and additional support to help
understand the competence process.
Accessible locations will be provided
for tests and interviews. Reasonable
adjustments will be considered
throughout the process and prior to
the staff member taking up a new
role.
Dependants
2
Not many staff have declared this
category in the monitoring returns
however we are aware that a number
of staff have caring responsibilities.
As outlined under gender, most of
those with prime caring responsibility
are female therefore the issues
outlined in this category are valid
here. Males who also have caring
responsibility are considered in the
same manner and have the same
access to the flexible working
policies as do female staff.
Are there opportunities to better promote equality of opportunity for
people within the Section 75 equalities categories?
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Section 75
category
If Yes, provide details
Religious
belief
Yes. By ensuring that
interviews, assessments etc do
not conflict with religious
observance i.e. Ramadan,
Salat (Muslim prayer time),
Good Friday etc
If No, provide reasons
No. There is no opportunity
within this policy to facilitate
this.
Political
opinion
Racial
group
Yes, through the mitigation
outlined above.
Age
Yes, through the mitigation
outlined above.
Marital
status
No. There is no opportunity
within this policy to facilitate
this.
Sexual
orientation
No. There is no opportunity
within this policy to facilitate
this.
Men and
women
generally
Yes, through the mitigation
outlined above.
Disability
Yes, through the mitigation
outlined above.
Yes, through the mitigation
Dependants outlined above.
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3 To what extent is the policy likely to impact on good relations between
people of different religious belief, political opinion or racial group?
minor/major/none
Good
relations
category
Details of policy impact
Level of impact
minor/major/none
Religious
belief
There is no specific policy impact in
respect of the promotion of good
relations but considering the needs of
this group will ultimately encourage
inclusiveness.
None
Political
opinion
There is no specific policy impact in
respect of the promotion of good
relations.
None
Racial
group
Ultimately the mitigation in respect of
None
the promotion of equal opportunities for
this group as outlined above will help to
promote inclusiveness. The decision to
use competency based recruitment and
selection was based on bench marking
with other organisations which
suggested that this methodology had
the potential to improve organisational
diversity.
4 Are there opportunities to better promote good relations between
people of different religious belief, political opinion or racial group?
Good
relations
category
If Yes, provide details
If No, provide reasons
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Religious
belief
No . There is no opportunity
within this policy to facilitate
this.
Political
opinion
No. There is no opportunity
within this policy to facilitate
this.
Racial
group
No. There is no opportunity
within this policy to facilitate
this.
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Additional considerations
Multiple identity
Generally speaking, people can fall into more than one Section 75 category.
Taking this into consideration, are there any potential impacts of the
policy/decision on people with multiple identities?
(For example; disabled minority ethnic people; disabled women; young Protestant
men; and young lesbians, gay and bisexual people).
If the mitigation factors as outlined above are taken into consideration the
multiple identities issues will also be resolved. These have been
addressed above.
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Part 3. Screening decision
If the decision is not to conduct an equality impact assessment, please provide
details of the reasons.
N/A
If the decision is not to conduct an equality impact assessment the public
authority should consider if the policy should be mitigated or an alternative
policy be introduced.
As outlined above the policy may impact on certain groups.
However, we believe that the actions outlined above will be
sufficient to minimise the potential of any adverse impacts on the
respective groups.
If the decision is to subject the policy to an equality impact assessment, please
provide details of the reasons.
N/A
All public authorities’ equality schemes must state the authority’s arrangements
for assessing and consulting on the likely impact of policies adopted or
proposed to be adopted by the authority on the promotion of equality of
opportunity. The Commission recommends screening and equality impact
28
assessment as the tools to be utilised for such assessments. Further advice on
equality impact assessment may be found in a separate Commission
publication: Practical Guidance on Equality Impact Assessment.
29
Mitigation
When the public authority concludes that the likely impact is ‘minor’ and an
equality impact assessment is not to be conducted, the public authority may
consider mitigation to lessen the severity of any equality impact, or the
introduction of an alternative policy to better promote equality of opportunity or
good relations.
Can the policy/decision be amended or changed or an alternative policy
introduced to better promote equality of opportunity and/or good relations?
If so, give the reasons to support your decision, together with the proposed
changes/amendments or alternative policy.
The actions to be taken forward to mitigate the impact of
this policy decision are as follows:-
The Change Management Team will ensure that all
options for each individual’s consideration are clearly
communicated to them including the process for
competitive competency based selection where that is
appropriate. The CMT already have a web site on the
College intranet where all documents are available for
reference, all competencies and job descriptions and
person specs will be published there. A full programme
of both collective and individual consultation is in place to
meet the colleges’ obligations and the needs of its staff. A
series of regular briefs is in operation as well as drop in
clinics for staff to attend In line with the obligations for
collective and individual consultation. Regular
consultation meetings are held with the recognised Trade
Unions who represent staff views and each member of
staff will be offered a minimum of two individual
consultation meetings throughout the process and as
many as are required to conclude the individuals specific
needs. The skills/and competences required for the
effective performance of each post in the new structure
will be provided to staff in advance of any process that
they choose to engage.
 Staff whose first language is not English and who will be
required to go through a competency based assessment
30
process and/or interview will be identified in advance and
an assessment of support needs will be made. If any
additional support is deemed necessary, the College will
provide it.
 Interviews and assessments as always will be facilitated
in an accessible location. Additionally, reasonable
adjustments for those with a specific disabilities will be
considered and factored into the assessment and
interview process. Reasonable adjustments will be
considered throughout the process and prior to the staff
member taking up a new role.
 Staff with College approved flexible hours will have the
opportunity to continue with these arrangements as far as
possible so long as business needs can accommodate
this arrangement. Management will ensure that full
consideration will be given to all possible alternatives
before refusing to incorporate flexible working
arrangements into new contracts.
 Where possible the college will ensure that interviews
and assessments will not conflict with certain faith times.
The outcome of the process will be reviewed and
monitored to avoid overrepresentation of any particular
group in the redeployment and redundancy pools.
 Support restructuring will have minimal direct impact on
service users however, proposals which may have a
direct impact will be considered separately.
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Timetabling and prioritising
Factors to be considered in timetabling and prioritising policies for equality
impact assessment.
If the policy has been ‘screened in’ for equality impact assessment, then
please answer the following questions to determine its priority for timetabling the
equality impact assessment. If not proceed to Part 4.
On a scale of 1-3, with 1 being the lowest priority and 3 being the highest,
assess the policy in terms of its priority for equality impact assessment.
Priority criterion
Rating
(1-3)
Effect on equality of opportunity and good relations
Social need
Effect on people’s daily lives
Relevance to a public authority’s functions
Note: The Total Rating Score should be used to prioritise the policy in rank
order with other policies screened in for equality impact assessment. This list of
priorities will assist the public authority in timetabling. Details of the Public
Authority’s Equality Impact Assessment Timetable should be included in the
quarterly Screening Report.
Is the policy affected by timetables established by other relevant public
authorities?
If yes, please provide details
32
Part 4. Monitoring
Public authorities should consider the guidance contained in the Commission’s
Monitoring Guidance for Use by Public Authorities (July 2007).
The Commission recommends that where the policy has been amended or an
alternative policy introduced, the public authority should monitor more broadly
than for adverse impact (See Benefits, P.9-10, paras 2.13 – 2.20 of the
Monitoring Guidance).
Effective monitoring will help the public authority identify any future adverse
impact arising from the policy which may lead the public authority to conduct an
equality impact assessment, as well as help with future planning and policy
development.
The outworkings of this policy will monitored by the CMT to ensure that
there are no adverse impacts on any of the 9 s75 categories.
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Part 5 - Approval and authorisation
Screened by:
Position/Job Title
Date
Stephanie McCormack
HR Lead CMT
30
January
2012
Terry Martin
Employee
Resourcing Service
Manager
30
January
2012
Mary Coffey
Equality Service
Manager
30
January
2012
34
Appendix A
Support Staff in Post Figures January 2012
Gender
Male
Female
35%
65%
Age Group
21-30
31-40
41-50
51-60
61 +
10%
22%
32%
30%
6%
Community Background
Protestant
46%
Roman Catholic
45%
Non-Determined
8%
Nether Religion
1%
Political Opinion
Nationalist
Unionist
Other
Not Disclosed
Declined to answer
Ethnicity
White
8%
8%
7%
70%
7%
Indian
Chinese
Not disclosed
98.5
%
.5%
.5%
.5%
Disability
Yes
5%
Dependents
Yes
3%
35
Marital Status
Married/Civil
Partnership
Divorced/Dissolved
Single
Single/Never
Married
Separated
Co-habiting
Widowed/Surviving
Partner
Not disclosed
Other
Sexual Orientation
Heterosexual
Gay
Bisexual
Lesbian
Declined to answer
Not disclosed
43%
2.5%
28%
2%
2%
3%
.5%
17%
2%
49%
.3%
.5%
.3%
5%
45%
36