Equality Act 2010
The Equality Act 2010 combines anti-discrimination law and gives protection to people with protected characteristics.
The Equality Act 2010 has strengthened legal protections for more people:
- protecting more groups of people, like those who are breast feeding, older people and carers
- doing more to protect disabled people, neurodivergent people and people with long term health conditions
- allowing employers to take positive actions to achieve a diverse workforce
- making sure service providers do not treat people unfairly
The council has a proactive approach to equalities, particularly recognising the characteristics protected in law under the Equality Act 2010. In 2020, the council recognised additional vulnerable characteristics and circumstances which we give the same support to as protected characteristics. These groups are:
Carers – People who provide unpaid care for a family member or friend who could not cope without their care due to a disability, illness, mental health or addiction.
Care experienced children and care leavers – Children who have been in the care of a local authority for more than 24 hours up to their 16th birthday are known as care experienced children. Care leavers are young people aged 16 to 25 who have left local authority care. For more information about care experienced children and care leavers visit our Children in Care and Leaving Care Services page.
Military Veterans – People who have served at least one day in any of His Majesty’s Armed Forces either as a regular or a reservist.
The Socio-Economically Vulnerable – People who are disadvantaged by a range of factors. These include being at risk of, or experiencing poverty, health inequalities, people who are income deprived, people who live in deprived areas, people who live in poor housing or people who are socially excluded due to other characteristics such as their age, disability, gender identity, race or sexual orientation.
Public Sector Equality Duty
The Public Sector Equality Duty is part of the Equality Act 2010 and applies to public sector organisations. It says that we must meet the needs of all individuals in the way we work, when shaping policy, delivering services and in relation to our own employees. We can play our part in making society fairer by tackling discrimination and providing equality of opportunity for all.
The public sector equality duty has three aims the we must show how we working to:
Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct prohibited by the Act
Improve equality of opportunity between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not share it
Foster good relations between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do not share it.
Additional Legislation Linked to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
The Equality Act 2010 is not the only piece of legislation that requires the council to have regard for equality, diversity and inclusion in our work. Other pieces of legislation include:
The Health and Safety Act 1974 requires employers to have ‘due regard’ for the health, safety and security of employees in the workplace
The Human Rights Act 1998 requires all public bodies, including the Council, and those acting on behalf of public bodies to act in a way that respects and protects an individual’s human rights.
The Health and Social Care Act 2012 introduced legal duties for local authorities to take steps reduce health inequalities and improve the health of people living in their area.
Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 introduced civil marriage for same sex couples in England and Wales.
The Care Act 2014 sets out sets out when the local authority has a responsibility to meet someone's care and support needs. It also provides recognition and a definition of a carer and a cared for person.
The Accessible Information Standard (AIS) requires all organisations that provide health services (including GP practices or adult social care) to identify, record, share and meet the communication needs of patients/ recipients of care who have a disability, impairment or sensory loss.
The Armed Forces Act 2021 enshrines the principles of the Armed Forces Covenant in law requiring local authorities to reduce and eliminate disadvantages experienced by military veterans and serving military personnel in terms of housing, employment, healthcare and education by virtue of their military service.
The Carers Leave Act 2024 requires employers to offer employees up to one week of unpaid leave per year. Employees are eligible to take this leave if they look after a dependent who has a ‘long term care need’.
LET’S Do It! & Equality, Diversity and Inclusion strategy and objectives 2024 to 2028
Bury Council made a commitment to significant improvements in our equalities and inclusion practice as both an employer and service provider and commissioner.
This commitment is made as part of our delivery of the Bury 2030 vision through the Let's Do It! strategy, which has inclusion at its core.
The inclusion vision for Bury 2030 is to enable every person in the borough to fully participate in and shape the collective, by supporting people to be themselves; to speak out about ideas and concerns and to be heard.
It describes commitments to develop relationships, create new and developed forums to hear every voice and co-design services with the people who use them, as well as ongoing community safety activity which drives cohesion through a culture of trust, tolerance and understanding.
The council’s strategic commitment to inclusion is articulated in our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy that was agreed in 2024 and will run until 2028.
Our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion strategy recognises that everyone has the right to thrive and succeed and provides a strategic direction to support people with different characteristics and circumstances to share in the opportunities and success Let’s Do It!
This will help us to further improve our equality performance and ensure that we meet our obligations under the Equality Act 2010 and associated Public Sector Equality Duty.
Progress against our equality objectives are reported on annually.
Equality Advisory and Support Service
For support with issues relating to organisations other than the Council, please contact the Equality Advisory and Support Service as they can advise you:
- If you face an incident of discrimination
- On your rights under the Equality Act
- How to find an informal way to resolve your complaint of discrimination.
They can be contacted on 0808 800 0082, via textphone 0808 800 0084 or by visiting the Equality Advisory Service website