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The Council (including the Education Authority and the Licensing Board) is reviewing our equality outcomes.

We have drafted six new outcomes and would like your opinions about these.

Our draft outcomes are:

1. We make access to information and services easier for people with protected characteristics.
2. Our communities are safe for, and welcoming to, people with protected characteristics.
3. We raise awareness of issues and challenges faced by people with protected characteristics along with ways to overcome them.
4. ߣsirÊÓƵ and Bute is a welcoming place for New Scots to come to and settle in.
5. We ensure people with protected characteristics are enabled to progress.
6. Our work relating to equalities and people with protected characteristics is coordinated across the organisation and strategically aligned.

Why we have equality outcomes:

Setting equality outcomes help us to:

• Make sure the interests of people from all backgrounds, especially those with protected characteristics, are reflected in the work we do. By linking our equality outcomes to the wider work the council does, we make sure groups which might otherwise be disadvantaged or overlooked are included in our decision making.
• Meet the requirements of the Equality Act 2010 by working to eliminate discrimination, advance equality, and foster good relationships between diverse groups.

The Equality Act (2010) focuses on people with ‘protected characteristics’. These protected characteristics are:

• Race
• Disability
• Sex
• Age
• Sexual orientation
• Religion and belief
• Gender reassignment
• Marriage and civil partnership
• Pregnancy and maternity.

The Equality Act (2010) requires the council to:

• Eliminate discrimination, harassment and victimisation
• Advance equality of opportunity between people who share a protected characteristic and those who do not
• Foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not.

How we have come up with our proposed outcomes:

In coming up with the themes we would like to reflect in our outcomes we have looked at:

• The council’s priorities.
• Areas of work where links can be made to ensure equalities are taken into account as these progress.
• Work going on outwith the council which may influence what we want to do.

Your opinions matter:

As we have drafted these outcomes, we have talked to various council officers. Now we wish to hear from you.

For each of the proposed outcomes, we have provided a short explanation of why we have included it and what we hope it will achieve. For each one, we ask whether or not you agree with what we have suggested, and whether you have any comments to make.

Complete consultation