Equality and diversity

It is our vision to fully mainstream equality and diversity into the foundation of BIS' core business to achieve a position where equality and diversity forms part of everything that we do. We can only deliver our important and ambitious agenda if we ensure that our work reflects the diverse society we live in and we take into account the needs of, and impacts on all the people, businesses and communities we serve. Our aim is to demonstrate best practice in all that we do and excel in the field of equality and diversity across the full range of our responsibilities.

We are working hard to ensure that equality and diversity is the responsibility of everyone in BIS so that it is embedded across the Department. Our ultimate aim is to deliver a more equal and fairer society for all.

Equality Act 2010

The Equality Act 2010 commenced on 1 October 2010, providing one piece of legislation that covers age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation. The Act streamlines and simplifies the law to make it easier to understand and use. It also strengthens the law with the new public sector equality duty (PSED), which includes the general duty requiring BIS to have due regard to the need to:

• Eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation
• Advance equality of opportunity between different groups
• Foster good relations between different groups

The general duty is underpinned by specific duties, which are legal requirements designed to help drive better performance. The specific duties require BIS to publish:

• information to demonstrate our compliance with the Equality Duty by 31 January 2011 and then at least annually and
• equality objectives by 6 April 2012 and then at least every four years,

These regulations are in line with the government’s broader approach to the public sector – to reduce bureaucracy and increase transparency. Public bodies will be able to take a flexible, more proportionate approach to implementing the Equality Duty, while still being transparent about all that they do. This transparency will drive democratic accountability across the public sector, so that public bodies are accountable to the people and communities that they serve.

The Government Equalities Office leads on the Equality Act and sits within the Home Office - more information on the Equality Act 2010 can be found at the Home Office website.

Equality objectives

The BIS equality objectives are a set of six specific and measurable objectives which will ensure that we consider equality and diversity in all that we do. These objectives fall into two distinct groups: those about BIS as an employer and those about BIS as a policy-making department.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills: equality objectives (PDF, 157 Kb) 

Information to demonstrate our compliance with the Equality Duty

BIS uses various data sources to develop its understanding of its policy areas and has data published across its website. You can find the links below.

Further Education & Skills Statistical Reports uses data covering age, gender, ethnicity and disability from the Data Service, providing information on the FE sector:

• The Data Service website

Higher Education and student finance uses data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) and the Student Loans Company to inform understanding of the HE sector. These can be seen at:

• Higher Education Statistics Agency website
• Student Loans Company website

Labour Markets equalities information:

• Labour Markets equalities data and analysis 
• Labour Markets policy impact assessments 
• Labour Markets statistics 
• General information on equality and the labour market 
• Labour Markets multiple sources of information and datasets 
• Other research and analysis conducted by Labour Markets Directorate 
• External sources of information utilised by Labour Markets Directorate 

Enterprise and Economic Development Analysis Research:

• Reports of surveys, research and analysis that cut across enterprise and economic development policy issues 
• The Small Business Survey 2010 (PDF, 505 Kb) 
• A one-off BIS Small Business Survey boost report on ethnic minority-led businesses (PDF, 901 Kb) 
• A one off BIS Small Business Survey boost report on women-led businesses (PDF, 433 Kb) 

UK Trade and Investment’s (UKTI) diversity and management profile data can be found in its annual performance Impact and Monitoring Survey (PIMS) report:

• The PIMS 16-19 Main Report - Part 1 (September 2010) : The relevant sections are at 5.8 (p103-116).

BIS Workforce Data 

• BIS workforce data can be seen on the BIS Transparency data pages under Equality and Diversity Workforce data 2010 – 2011.

Executive Agencies

BIS’ Executive Agencies also publish their data sources on their own websites. These can be seen below.

The Insolvency Service:

• Diversity and equality information 

Intellectual Property Office:

• Equality and Diversity profile report – January 2012

Ordnance Survey:

• External published reports
• Equality Progress Report 2011 – Full Year

Skills Funding Agency:

• Equality and Diversity learner reports
• SFA workforce information report
• Research into sexual orientation and gender identity equality in adult learning (published in August 2011) 
• Annual equality progress report (published in September 2011)

For further information please email the Central Equality and Diversity Team.

 

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