0845 034 5250 Registered Charity No. 1096008 www.developecs.org.uk

EQUALITIES NEWSLETTER

Autumn 2014

“DEVELOP acts as a single source of equality information and

support for the voluntary and community sector in Wiltshire.”

DEVELOP supports the nine protected characteristics of equality

Age

Sex

Race

Disability

Religion and Belief

Marriage and Civil Partnership

Maternity and Pregnancy

Sexual Orientation

Gender Reassignment

0845 034 5250 Registered Charity No. 1096008 www.developecs.org.uk

0845 034 5250 Registered Charity No. 1096008 www.developecs.org.uk

Booking Information

For more information about any of the above Equalities events and training or to book your place please contact DEVELOP on 0845 034 5250 or email equalities@developecs.org.uk. You can also visit our website and book online at

www.developecs.org.uk/events

Don’t forget DEVELOP also offers equality related group support. Contact us for

more details on 0845 034 5250 or email equalities@developecs.org.uk

Equalities Training from DEVELOP

Develop Your Skills in Equalities. This training session is suitable for those new to equalities and those wishing to refresh and update their existing knowledge.

The training will cover the Equality Act 2010, protected characteristics, forms of discrimination, Public Sector Equality Duty, and your organisation’s equality policy. You will be able to increase your knowledge and understanding and demonstrate good practice.

DEVELOP runs this training session regularly, the details of the next training sessions are:

Date: Wednesday 1st October 2014

Time: 1.00pm — 4.00pm

Location: Longfield Community Hall, Weavers Dr, Trowbridge BA14 7DZ

Cost: £55 per person. (10% Discount for DEVELOP Members)

Other training sessions we provide include:

Equalities Healthcheck

Equalities Champions

Equalities for Health Professionals

DEVELOP is also able to offer tailored bespoke equalities training to meet your organisation’s needs and this is proving very popular with many organisations.

0845 034 5250 Registered Charity No. 1096008 www.developecs.org.uk

Religion or Belief: Tell us about your

experiences

Equality and Human Rights Commission are interested in hearing about your experience, whether good or bad. They want to gather as much information as they can from employees, service users, employers, service providers, trade unions, legal advisors and religion or belief groups so that we can assess how a person’s religion or belief, or lack of it, is taken into account at work and when using services. Please, visit www.developecs.org.uk/ECHR for more information.

Survey for BAME Communities About

Dementia

Wiltshire Council are conducting a survey to find out more about what people in Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities think about dementia and the services that are available.

Dementia affects everyone and we need to find out the best way to support people with dementia and their families and friends that look after them.

Please visit www.developecs.org.uk/DementiaBAME for more information.

LGB and Trans People over 50 Consultation

Intercom Trust are running a consultation through LGBT Voices in Action for LGB or/and Trans people who are over 50, and it's going to be really useful.

Log in to LGBT Voices In Action (http://www.lgbt.voicesinaction.com/), make your voice heard about the issues that might affect you, and help influence services in your area. (Services which we all might need one day...!).

Please, visit www.developecs.org.uk/LGBT50 for more information.

Consultations

For more Consultations and Surveys, please visit our consultations

page: www.developecs.org.uk/consultations

0845 034 5250 Registered Charity No. 1096008 www.developecs.org.uk

Consultations

Consultation on the Draft Wiltshire Education, Employment &

Skills Strategy 2014-2020 is currently open.

The new strategy aims to identify a shared vision, strategic objectives and priority actions to help Wiltshire Council and its partners on the Education, Employment and Skills Board to create an environment that will:

Support schools, the Further Education (FE) sector, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and training providers to increase participation in education, training and employment

Support the development of a skilled and competitive workforce that meets the needs of employers both now and in the future

Drive business development and economic growth

Co-ordinate collaborative partnership working to achieve common goals

Provide synergy between emerging education and skills policies translating into practice

This Strategy produced by Wiltshire Council on behalf of the Wiltshire Education, Employment & Skills Board, will guide the way in which key partners work together to respond to Wiltshire’s economic growth priorities whilst developing an inclusive economy that will provide equality of economic opportunity for all.

For more information, please visit: http://www.workwiltshire.co.uk/2014-2020-strategy/.

The deadline for responses is: 10th October 2014.

0845 034 5250 Registered Charity No. 1096008 www.developecs.org.uk

Equalities Events in Partnership with West Wilts Multi Faith Forum

Supported by Wiltshire Council and NHS Wiltshire Clinical Commissioning Group, DEVELOP has become the Single Equalities Service provider for Wiltshire. As part of this contract, DEVELOP will facilitate Events and Conferences in partnership with West Wiltshire Multi Faith Forum for BAME and Faith Groups. They will have the opportunity to share and discuss local and national issues of interest and concern to their communities and organisations.

The first of these events, BAME Forum—Your Voice, your Community, took place on the 18th of September 2014, at Bridge House, in Trowbridge.

A total of 14 people attended the event, including representatives from West Wiltshire Multi faith Forum, The Trowbridge Mosque, Wiltshire Islamic Cultural Society, West Wiltshire Community Group and other members of the community. There were also representatives from Wiltshire Council, Victim Support and Wiltshire Police.

Farzana Saker, from West Wilts Multi Faith Forum, introduced the events highlighting the need for community groups and individuals from BAME communities to take the chance of making these events their own, encouraging the attendees to express their views and concerns.

Farzana Saker, introducing the event.

“This is such an exciting initiative in which to get involved. Wiltshire Council is changing the way it works. Our vision is about creating stronger and more resilient communities by empowering people at a local level to have a say in what matters to them, more of an influence in decision making and the way

that services are delivered. The voice of BAME and Faith communities needs to clearly be part of this, heard and responded to.“

Jane Graham, Equalities Lead, Wiltshire Council

0845 034 5250 Registered Charity No. 1096008 www.developecs.org.uk

“I’m so pleased that the first

BAME/Faith Cluster meeting was

a success. It’s hopefully the start

of the creation of stronger, local

networks of community members

who can work in true partnership

with not just Wiltshire Council but

other public sector partners as well

(e.g. Police, Health, Fire).”

Jane Graham, Equalities Lead, Wiltshire Council

Community members during round table

discussions.

At the beginning of the meeting, the attendees had the opportunity to choose topics that were of interest to their community. Several were mentioned, such as Transport, Health and Social Care, Education, and Immigration.

The groups decided to focus the discussions on Hate Crime and Youth. The comments and issues brought up at these meetings will be forwarded to the relevant organisations for a response .

The next scheduled meetings are:

Tuesday 7th October, 2 — 4pm,

Salisbury

Monday 10th November, 2—4pm,

Devizes

Thursday 15th January, 2—4pm,

Chippenham

If you are interested in participating in these events, please contact Carl on 0845 034 5250 / carl@developecs.org.uk, or Farzana on 078 3481 2663 / farzisaker@gmail.com.

In early 2015 there will be two Conferences themed around BAME and Faith interests and issues. The first one will take place on the 25th of February in Salisbury, and the second one on the 5th of March in Chippenham. Details to follow.

“I admire this event and the

best thing is diversity of

organisations and people.”

Community Member

0845 034 5250 Registered Charity No. 1096008 www.developecs.org.uk

Volunteers Needed for Citizens Advice

Bureau

Wiltshire Citizens Advice is currently recruiting for new volunteers for a variety of roles; advisors, administrators, campaigners and receptionists. Would you like to learn new skills, gain confidence and make a difference?

Volunteering time for Wiltshire Citizens Advice is a rewarding way to make a real difference to the lives of people in your community.

It’s a great way to pick up new skills, make friends and feel part of an enthusiastic team. They provide free training and ongoing support.

For more information, please visit www.Cabwiltshire.org.uk and click on “volunteering” or email volunteer@cabwiltshire.org.uk.

News Call for contributions – Beyond 2015: shaping the future of equality, human

rights and social justice

The Equality and Diversity Forum (EDF) and EDF Research Network are calling for contributions to ‘Beyond 2015’ – a cross-sector and multidisciplinary project about equality, human rights and social justice in the UK supported by the British Academy and the Nuffield Foundation.

The project consists of a two-day conference in London in February 2015, an edited publication that will be available in printed and electronic formats, and online resources – see appendix below for full project outline

Themes for contributions

The project is about what has been achieved and where the future opportunities lie on the equality, human rights and broader social justice spectrum across the UK. The focus is on the connections between experiences, problems and solutions, rather than on particular fields of discrimination.

The project welcomes contributions from academic or non-academic researchers and from anyone working on or writing about equality, human rights and social justice. We are keen to include contributions from a broad range of sectors, disciplines, individuals and communities.

The project conference in February is an invitation-only event with a limited capacity. However, most of the conference material will be made freely available afterwards through the project’s online resources and publication. Please contact Moira Dustin or Electra Babouri at info@edf.org.uk for further information.

0845 034 5250 Registered Charity No. 1096008 www.developecs.org.uk

News

Access Barriers to Buses Have to Be

Fixed

Bus services can be the only way to get around for blind and partially sighted people but eight out of ten respondents to a recent RNIB survey said they often missed the bus they wanted because they could not see to hail it down and over half said they struggled to get vital information like route number and destination from bus drivers.

The Royal National Institute for Blind People (RNIB) launched a campaign to motivate people to write to the Minister of Transport about the delay on the introduction of mandatory disability awareness training for bus drivers.

Please, visit http://www.rnib.org.uk/campaigning-current-campaigns/bus-campaign for more information and to participate on this campaign!

Access to Justice Campaign

Access to justice is on the verge of a crisis. There can be no effective rule of law when we lack a fully accessible and affordable judicial system.

We are launching our campaign because: 600,000 people have lost access to civil legal aid the Jackson reforms have made lower-value and complex cases financially unsustainable for law firms, and funding shortages are forcing pro bono advice centres to shut down. By campaign, we mean an organised way to achieve a goal. We mean doing what lawyers do best: gathering evidence, presenting the facts, persuading. We will be focusing on three core goals, and need the help of our members to achieve them. The three core goals: persuade policymakers to amend parts one and two of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act raise public awareness of the importance of legal aid and the areas of law where it is still available, and encourage and support our members to make their services more accessible to the public

Help us raise awareness of legal aid, please visit: http://www.lawsociety.org.uk/representation/campaigns/access-to-justice/

0845 034 5250 Registered Charity No. 1096008 www.developecs.org.uk

Meet Sebastian, a Volunteer Story

“Putting back into the community, what I receive.

The support I receive means a lot, so I would like

someone else to benefit from me volunteering in the

community” Sebastian

Sebastian now volunteers on Chippenham FM every Tuesday evening from 7 – 8 pm and is thoroughly enjoying his new volunteer role “it enables me an opportunity to be able to put my own thoughts on great music into place for others to hear”.

“Volunteering has provided me the chance to fulfil a long term dream and it makes me happy. It is also giving me experience in a relevant field which may help with future employment (a new range of transferable skills)”.

Sebastian’s main hobby is listening and being on radios, either radio stations or a taxi radio service and he has always dreamed of being more involved with either.

Sebastian would love to be able to start employment at either a local radio sta-tion or in a taxi service and feels volun-teering will help give him practical hands on experience to achieve this goal.

Sebastian had previously volunteered with the RSPCA charity shop, sorting out the incoming stock but was definite-ly looking for another opportunity to help him further his skills and knowledge around radio’s.

Sebastian had always wanted to volun-teer within his local community as he feels it is important to put back what you may receive “The support I receive (from the community) means a lot, so I would like someone else to benefit from me volunteering”.

Luckily for Sebastian Volunteer Centre Wiltshire had just had a new opportunity with Chippenham FM, which Sebastian was extremely keen to find out more.

Sebastian met with Station Manager, Andy Thatcher, who was impressed with Sebastian’s enthusiasm for folk music and straight away, Sebastian was task with putting together a playlist for the next weeks show.

0845 034 5250 Registered Charity No. 1096008 www.developecs.org.uk

Wiltshire Children & Families Voluntary Sector

Forum

The next Forum Meeting is on Tuesday 25th November 2014, 9.30 — 12.30 at Wiltshire Scout HQ, Potterne Wick, Nr Devizes. Buffet lunch and refreshments provided. All welcome. For more information visit http://www.cfvsf.org/

Area Boards Health Fairs

Your local Area Board invites you to its next meeting, which will focus on health care in Wiltshire and what this will mean to you. You are welcome to visit the health fair where personal health MOTs, advice and free passes to use for leisure activities will be on offer. Please, visit this link http://ow.ly/BGrfv, to find out when they are taking place.

FREE help with Computer Basics

A FREE monthly computer club starts on 16th September 2014. It will meet in Malmesbury Library every third Tuesday of the month between 14.00 — 16.00. This club is being provided by Wiltshire Online’s local Digital Champion volunteers in the Malmesbury community area who will provide basic help to people new to computers or lacking confidence. Please register by telephone: 01225 793349 or email: digitalinclusion@wiltshire.gov.uk

Develop’s Equalities Calendar

To find out more about relevant dates and events for equalities groups and communities, please, visit our website http://www.developecs.org.uk/equalities-calendar/ .We also have a PDF version of this calendar which can be downloaded from our website. If you would like us to email it to you, please, contact us.

If you would like to see your story printed here email it to

equalities@developecs.org.uk or call 0845 034 5250

What’s On!

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NOV

OCT

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2014

2014

0845 034 5250 Registered Charity No. 1096008 www.developecs.org.uk

Contact Us

TELEPHONE: 0845 034 5250 (calls charged at a local rate from landlines)

TEXT PHONE: 0845 034 2113

EMAIL: equalities@developecs.org.uk

WEBSITE: www.developecs.org.uk

POST: DEVELOP Enhancing Community Support

3-4 New Road

Chippenham

Wiltshire

SN15 1EJ

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