The Diversity and Inclusion Specialist submitted a report to request that Cabinet agree to the proposed Positive Action Policy.

Cabinet is recommended to:

1.    Approve this policy to go forward to Council for approval, publication and use.

The Diversity and Inclusion Specialist had submitted a report to request that Cabinet agree to the proposed Positive Action Policy.

Councillor Chapman presented the report and noted that it would also be going to Council in July. He said that this policy was a subset of their approach to EDI. He emphasised that the policy was focused on tackling underrepresentation in the Council’s workforce. He said that the effective use of this policy would cover actions in recruitment, retention, training, mentoring, and development. Councillor Chapman emphasised the differences between positive action and positive discrimination and said that they were only implementing positive action. Applied well, he highlighted how helpful this policy can be.

Sobia Afridi, the Diversity and Inclusion Specialist, said that they believe the policy will help to improve the diversity of the Council. She noted that they want to improve their diversity figures to better represent the people of the city that they serve.

Melissa Hope, the Organisational Development Manager, said that a lot of the work in the policy was already underway, but that the policy would give them a central point to refer to. She said that this would be useful for hiring managers to help them understand how to put the policy into action. She said that they had benchmarked against what other councils do and considered their specific needs when they were making the policy.

Councillor Hollingsworth asked for clarification on how the consultation with the trade unions had worked and asked what the feedback from trade unions had been.

The Diversity and Inclusion Specialist said that the unions had received the policy positively and were keen for it to be implemented. She said that the unions liked that the policy was simple and easy to understand. She said that they unions had flagged the issue of monitoring, and they had agreed. She said they were working to consider how they would monitor the policy, to ensure that it is effectively implemented.

Councillor Arshad said that she was grateful for the policy. She asked if any feedback in this area had been received from exit interviews. She also noted that they had flagged that more work could always be done, she asked what that work could be.

Councillor Chapman responded and said that they do hold exit interviews. He said that most of the reasons given for leaving from individuals from underrepresented groups were related to pursuing other opportunities or higher pay. He said that there was no trend of people leaving because of how they were being treated or due to discrimination. He said that the staff survey had also demonstrated a strong sense of belonging amongst staff. Regarding further work, he said that they just have to continue persistently and patiently doing work in this area. With the more work they do and the more improvements they make, he said they would consistently become a good place to work.

Councillor Arshad thanked the officers for their work on the policy.

Councillor Munkonge highlighted that the politics on EDI were changing and that other places were looking to back off of this work. He emphasised how positive it was that as a Council, they were choosing to not only retain but strengthen their approach to this work.

Councillor Chapman said that when he is presented with arguments made by critics of EDI work, it makes him more determined to fight for these efforts. He emphasised that it was fundamental for the Council to pursue the furtherance of equality and opportunity, because that is how they get a workforce which is representative of the city.

Councillor Brown agreed that it was crucial that they ensure that the Council’s workforce represents the people of the city. She concurred that this work is a long process, but that she had also been reassured by the recent staff survey. She welcomed this policy and the ongoing work to make the Council more diverse and representative of the residents of Oxford. She thanked the officers for their work on the policy.

Cabinet resolved to:

1. Approve this policy to go forward to Council for approval, publication and use.