The Parish Council recognises that discrimination in any form is unacceptable and in most cases is also unlawful and has therefore adopted an Equal Opportunities policy to ensure that all applicants for jobs, employees, Councillors and residents are treated fairly and without favour or prejudice of any kind.
- each and every employee and Councillor has a duty to observe and apply the policy at all times
- to ensure that the Council’s services and facilities reach the widest cross section of the community and that all vacancies are advertised externally
- to ensure that no job applicant, employee or member of the public receives less favourable treatment on grounds of race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, disability, political opinion/affiliation, age or religion.
- all job applications and client specifications will be as simple and straightforward as possible and will not ask for unnecessary information
- the questions asked at interviews will be related to the requirements of the job and will not seek irrelevant information. All applicants will be short-listed on the basis of their capability and any disabled or elderly person will be included provided they satisfy the essential criteria of the post
- each and every employee and Councillor has an obligation to make a positive contribution towards engendering an environment of equal opportunity throughout the remit of the Council
- the Council operate a grievance procedure and this is available to any person who believes that they have been discriminated against and this should be done in writing and addressed to the Chairman of the Parish Council, or Clerk to the Council.
The Parish Council are committed to applying this policy throughout all areas of its activities and wants to see these services, facilities and resources accessible and useful to every citizen regardless of gender, age, ethnic origin, religious belief, disability, marital status, sexual orientation or any other individual characteristic which may unfairly affect a person’s opportunities in life.
In all situations, people will be judged solely on merit or ability and the following key points are set out in the policy:-
Any breach of this policy could lead to disciplinary action and depending on the outcome, involve dismissal.
Little Cawthorpe Parish Council EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES January 2022