Equality outcomes and mainstreaming report 2023: easy read

Part 1: The Scottish Government as a policy maker

Mainstreaming achievements and actions

Public Sector Equality Duty

In 2021 the Scottish Government had a consultation about the Public Sector Equality Duty in Scotland.

A consultation is when we ask people what they think about something.

The Public Sector Equality Duty means the Scottish Government and public bodies must make sure their work supports equality.

For example, in their services, through their jobs, and through the money they spend.

Public bodies are organisations that provide public services like schools, hospitals and councils.

By the next reporting period:

We want to improve the rules in 2025.

Mainstreaming Strategy

A strategy is a big plan.

We are making a strategy to find better ways to put equality, inclusion and human rights at the centre of all government policies, decisions and spending.

By the next reporting period:

We will have a draft report in 2023 and start work on the strategy by the end of 2024.

Organisational capability, capacity and culture – this meansmaking sure our staff can make policy and give services that have equality and human rights at the centre.

By the next reporting period:

We will have new training, guidance and information for staff.

Equality data and evidence

In 2021 we started the first part of our Equality Data Improvement Programme.

In 2022 the Scottish Government had a public consultation on the action plan and analysed what people have said.

Analysed means it was checked very carefully to understand it better.

In March 2023 we published Scotland's new Equality Evidence Strategy for 2023 to 2025.

By the next reporting period:

Work will begin on this new strategy and the 45 main actions to improve how we collect and use data.

Equality budget process

The way the Scottish Government spends money must treat people equally and fairly and respect human rights.

By the next reporting period:

We will have checked the Scottish budget to see that it treats people fairly on gender and equality and that it protects human rights.

Your gender is if you see yourself as male, female or in a different way.

We will do work on recommendations made by the Equality and Human Rights Budget Advisory Group.

Recommendations are what the group want to see happen.

Procurement is the way goods and services are bought.

We have guidance and support to help us find ways to have less inequality in our procurement.

We need organisations to consider equality before we buy things from them.

Policy Making: Protected characteristics and treating people fairly

Age

You can find out more about protected characteristics in this Easy Read document.

We published 'A Fairer Scotland for Older People - A Framework for Action' in April 2019 to challenge the inequalities older people face, and to celebrate older people in Scotland.

We have the Young Person's Guarantee Equalities Action Plan to create opportunities for young people.

In March 2022, we published Best Start, Bright Futures, our second Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan for 2022-26.

By the next reporting period:

A Festival of Ageing will celebrate our ageing population.

We continue to give grant money to support young people who find it difficult to get a job.

Disability

£5 million of our Equality and Human Rights Fund gives support for disabled people's organisations to:

• do work that promotes equality and human rights
• make sure disabled people are treated more fairly

The Access to Elected Office Fund supports people who want to stand in local government elections.

By the next reporting period:

We are developing a new Disability Equality strategy with a group made up of members from Disabled People's Organisations.

Disabled People's Organisations are controlled and led by disabled people with more than half of the board and membership being disabled people.

Religion and belief

A Faith and Belief policy team started in 2021 to support the inclusion of faith and belief interests across Scottish Government.

The Faith and Belief Representatives Group meets with the government every 2 months.

By the next reporting period:

In 2023 we will publish our Faith and Belief Engagement Strategy to help work better with faith and belief groups.

We will have a plan to develop knowledge and understanding of faith and belief in policy across Scottish Government.

Race

In 2021 we gave the Equality and Human Rights Fund £21 million with more than £5 million for organisations working on race equality issues.

In April 2022 we started the Anti-Racism Interim Governance Group to:

• check the Government's anti-racist outcomes for minority ethnic people in Scotland
• give recommendations on how the Scottish Government can be anti-racist in the way it works

Racism is being treated unfairly because of your racial or ethnic group.

People from an ethnic group might have the same language, culture or religion.

In October 2019 we launched the Gypsy/Traveller Action Plan which will do work in health, education, equality, housing and benefits.

By the next reporting period:

From 2023 our main work will be to develop anti-racist ways of working and policies.

The Scottish Government will give up to £20 million to local councils from 2021-26 from the Gypsy/Traveller Accommodation Fund for more and better accommodation.

Sex

The Scottish Government wants to make sure everyone in Scotland is treated fairly and has the same choices and chances whatever your gender is.

Phase Two of the National Advisory Council on Women and Girls (NACWG) launched in 2022 and recommendations from Phase One are happening.

We are spending money on tackling child poverty spend, including on the Scottish Child Payment and Child Bridging Payments.

This will help a lot of women who are single mothers.

A Women's Leadership Panel started in January 2022 to work on gender inequality and improve women's experiences in the justice system – access to the police and courts.

Gender inequality means men and women are not treated fairly and equally.

By the next reporting period:

We will have the first yearly statement and report about how Scottish Government policies treat men and women fairly and give them the same choices and chances.

Sexual Orientation and Gender Reassignment

Sexual orientation means what kinds of people you love or have sexual or romantic feelings about.

Gender reassignment means changing your gender - if you see yourself as male, female or in a different way.

We are funding projects to tackle inequality and protect rights for LGBTI+ people.

LGBTI+ means people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or intersex.

Transgender means you see yourself differently from what you were registered at birth (male or female).

Intersex means people whose bodies have both male and female characteristics.

+ means people who feel part of the LGBTI community but are not listed above.

We are introducing laws to ban conversion practices by the end of 2023.

Conversion practices are actions that want to change the sexual orientation or gender identity of a person.

We have introduced the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill to Parliament to make it easier for transgender people to get legal gender recognition.

By the next reporting period:

We will have developed a Non-Binary Equality Action Plan.

Non-binary means someone does not see themselves as either a man or a woman.

Things that affect all protected characteristics

Education

We are doing work to encourage more young women to do science, technology, engineering and maths courses and have careers in these subjects.

We are working with schools and Early Learning and Childcare settings to give learning and support to help with this.

We included LGBTI+ information in education from September 2021 including a website with resources and e-learning for teachers.

We have an Anti-Racism in Education Programme.

By the next reporting period

We will work to reach the target of having 4% of our teachers from an ethnic minority by 2030.

4% means 4 out of every 100 people.

We will publish a national work plan to prevent and respond to harmful behaviour and gender based violence in schools.

We are checking and changing our anti-bullying guidance 'Respect for All'.

Employment

Our Fair Work Action Plan sets out actions to promote fair and inclusive workplaces across Scotland.

By the next reporting period:

We will share our learning about Fair Work and good ways of working.

We want to:

• develop and start an anti-racist training framework by 2025
• have more diverse and inclusive workplaces by 2025
• reduce the gender pay gap in Scotland by the end of May 2026

A pay gap is the difference in average earnings between 2 groups of people – in this case between men and women

• at least halve the disability employment gap by 2038 - this is the difference in average earnings between disabled and non-disabled people

Refugees and displaced people - people who have left their country to escape from war, violence or mistreatment, to find safety in another country

We have helped more than 19,000 people from Ukraine move to Scotland so they are safe from war.

We have made a New Scots refugee strategy to support refugees coming to Scotland.

By the next reporting period:

We will give better choice in the housing we offer to people from Ukraine. We will help them to feel welcome in our communities.

We will check and change the New Scots strategy to give better support to refugees.