SUFFOLK RACE EQUALITY LEAGUE TABLE: “PRISONS DO WELL, HEALTH BADLY, OVERALL NOT GOOD”!

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Wednesday 21 July 2010

The Ipswich & Suffolk Council for Racial Equality (ISCRE) has evaluated 21 public sector organisations in the local government, health, education and policing/prison sectors and has scored them against four criteria with marks out of three for each. (Copies of the league table are attached with this media release).

These are the representation of visibly black and minority ethnic (BME) staff and members at all levels and across all departments of their organisation, whether they provide accessible race equality data on issues such as employment; access to services, complaints or compliments, their willingness to work with ISCRE as a long term strategic partner and then extent to which they recognise the importance of ISCRE’s role in Suffolk by supporting it financially.

 

None of the organisations scores even half of the maximum, with the best result being achieved by three prisons in the county Warren Hill, Highpoint and Edmunds Hill – and Suffolk County Council - who achieve four points each.

The worst performers are to be found in the health and education sectors with NHS Suffolk, the Suffolk Mental Health Partnership Trust, Ipswich Hospital, West Suffolk Hospital, and West Suffolk College scoring no points at all. Many district and borough councils also fail.

 

Jane Basham, ISCRE’s Chief Executive, felt the figures “are the shame of Suffolk as a place committed to treating everyone equally. No one can take any comfort from these scores. Since 2002 there has been a legal Public Duty on all providers of public services and those they contract with to deliver on race equality”.

 

“This means that they have to eliminate unlawful racial discrimination and promote equality of opportunity and good relations between persons of different racial groups”.
“These organisations, having largely ignored the equality and diversity agenda in the good economic times seem to be further downplaying such efforts as times get tougher. Yet the removal of such barriers can make services more effective and efficient to provide”.

 

“This makes organisations like ISCRE even more vital in helping to empower all communities, by removing the barriers to employment and services that discrimination presents. The role of the third sector will too become more important when times are tough”.

 

Evidence of this need is provided by a massive increase in the discrimination casework handled by ISCRE’s team of lawyers, with the number of cases reaching 158 in 2009/10 compared with just 69 two years ago.

Jane Basham hopes that this league table – which will be updated each year from now on – will act as a spur to these organisations to look honestly at how they tackle race equality issues.

“We hope it will provide a catalyst for focused action in partnership with ISCRE to ensure race equality remains high on the agenda of our Public bodies. We hope that by 2012, 10 years on from the implementation of their first Race Equality schemes, all Public Bodies will be achieving at least ten points out of a possible total of 12”. ENDS

 

The Ipswich and Suffolk Council for Racial Equality (ISCRE) is a charity responsible for the provision of services and advice to both individuals and organisations with a view to improving the equality of opportunity for all and reducing discrimination on the grounds of race, religion and other linked equality themes.

Founded in 1977, the work of ISCRE is overseen by a Board of Trustees and is run by a small team of full-time staff backed by a large network of volunteers.

ISCRE publishes a number of interesting and relevant publications about its work and research.

For all media enquiries, please contact Jane Basham on (01473) 408111 or jane@iscre.org.uk