Powers and responsibilities

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Powers and responsibilities

• CEHR launches Oct 2007, when DRC and EOC will be
  absorbed, with CRE joining by 2009. It will
  inherit all of the powers of the existing
  commissions.
• From Oct 2007 it will also promote equality and
  tackle discrimination in relation to sexual
  orientation, age, religion or belief and promote
  and protect human rights
• Encourage compliance promote good practice
  provide advice and guidance
• Requirement to promote good relations

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Powers and responsibilities (2)

• Power to launch Inquiries and Investigations
• Enforcement powers for new regulations outlawing
  discrimination in employment on grounds of sexual
  orientation, religion and belief, and in time,
  age
• Enforcing the new public sector Gender Duty
• CEHR covers England, Scotland and Wales. In
  Scotland and Wales there will be statutory
  committees and responsible Commissioners
• Regional presence working with community groups
  such as RECs

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How will the Commission work?

• Flexible and proportionate
• Acting as influential champion
• In partnership with a range of groups

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What else can the new Commission do?

• Information, advice and assistance
• Guidance and good practice
• Legal role
• Consult stakeholders on strategic plan
• Publish a state of the nation equality report
• Monitor hate crime, and challenge prejudice and
  hatred of particular groups
• Establish strong evidence base and understanding
  of discrimination

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The transition phase

• Specialist team handling transition process
• Work covers
• Programme planning and management
• CEHR governance
• Strategic direction and service delivery
• Workforce fit for purpose
• Communications
• Infrastructure
• Service continuity
• Developing strategic options for incoming Chair
  and Commissioners to consider, and support all
  aspects of the creation of the new CEHR

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Advice work to date

• Literature/Research review
• Ongoing programme of meetings and interviews
  existing Commissions, advice providers, new
  strand organisations etc
• Collecting data
• Drawing on other work from across the programme

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Advice Work to date (2)

•  We have sought to
• Define our terms what do mean when we talk
  about advice?
•   Set the context what is the environment in
  which the new Commission will operate?
•  Identify some options for consideration what
  is possible for discrimination advice for
  individuals, and the role of the new Commission?

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Findings

• Need for high quality information and advice
• High expectations of individuals stakeholders
• Demand likely to outstrip Commissions capacity
  to provide it
• One of many providers
• Trends in existing Commissions
• Challenges in capacity, funding quality of
  advice
• Advice maze / advice desert referral fatigue

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modern, strategic source of advice and support

• Information
• direct provision of information (self-help and
  assisted) through helpline and website
• Advice and guidance the main focus
• significant investment in direct provision of
  advice at general help level through website,
  helpline and self help tools
• second tier partnership support for case workers
• coordinating and quality assuring discrimination
  advice provided by others
• strategic casework support for individuals
• Intelligence gathering
• Legal representation
• only in strategic cases

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Next steps?

• Working with and through external partner
  organisations makes sense
• Adds value
• Established structures
• Wide geographical coverage
• Trust of communities or client groups
• High recognition factor
• Potentially more accessible

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Challenges

• Assumes there are partners!
• Capacity of partner organisations
• Quality assurance
• Avoiding confusion
• Referral fatigue
• Co-ordination and co-operation

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Welcome your views

• Hope that todays discussion can inform our
  thinking
• Expectations yours? clients?
• Transfer of expertise - what works?
• Quality assurance how feasible?
• Better networking role for CEHR?
• Capacity building what is the need?

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