‘Cut Consultants and Diversity Solutions!’ – In Defence of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Work 

Our local authorities are one of the cornerstones of our society. They provide vital services including roads, rubbish collection and education. But they are particularly important for the most vulnerable in our society; for example, looked after children, and those requiring adult social care. However, local authorities have suffered from repeated budget cuts since 2010 combined with an increasing demand for essential services, leading to a record funding shortfall, which totals almost £3.57bn across councils in the three nations for 2024/25 (UNISON, 2023).  

In the information that was trailed ahead of the budget on 6th March 2024, it was stated that, to fix their financial woes, councils should stop investing in equality, diversity and inclusion work and focus on frontline services (BBC, 2024). This builds upon previous attacks on equality, diversity and inclusion work by Michael Gove and Esther McVey who stated: ‘The taxpayers are saying, and I absolutely agree with them, we don’t want to be paying for these ballooning away days and these spurious courses. What we want to do is to make sure you are doing the job at hand.’ (MailOnline, 2024). 

This is not the first attack from our government on organisations’ endeavours to embed equality, diversity and inclusion in their practices. In April 2023, Suella Braverman criticised the police for engaging with diversity training and initiatives (Home Office, 2023), one month after the Metropolitan police was found to be guilty of institutional racism, misogyny and homophobia (Casey, 2023).  

This idea that work on equality, diversity and inclusion is a waste of time and money which prevents organisations from undertaking their core work, is a harmful myth. Equality, diversity and inclusion are core to successful organisations, particularly an organisation such as a local authority which is integral to providing vital services for everyone: people of every ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, gender identity, sex, age, socioeconomic status and disability. 

There is a moral duty to engage in equality, diversity and inclusion work. There is a wealth of research which shows that people who experience discrimination and exclusion, experience higher levels of mental and physical health problems (UCLA, 2016). Failing to consider the needs of diverse communities can lead to people being unable to access key services. 

There is a legal duty to engage in equality, diversity and inclusion work. Under the Equality Act 2010, public sector organisations not only have a requirement to respond to incidents of discrimination and harassment, but must proactively take action to eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations. Getting it wrong can lead to expensive and damaging tribunals, harm to reputation and most importantly, harm to staff and service users.  

Finally, promoting equality, diversity and inclusion saves money, improves services and makes organisations more successful in many different ways. Organisations who are engaging effectively with equality work are able attract and retain the best staff (People Management, 2022), and have increased productivity and morale (British Medical Journal, 2022). Diverse staff teams bring together varied perspectives, leading to innovation and improved decision making (Forbes, 2020). Understanding the diverse needs of customers, clients and residents, and taking into account people’s different needs, leads to more efficient and effective services. 

Organisations often approach EqualiTeach at a time of need – a tribunal may have occurred and/or an individual has been suspended or dismissed, and the team has been left upset, angry and divided. It is inevitably found that the incident which led to this response was only the tip of the iceberg. There has been a long history of attitudes and behaviours that have gone under the radar, people have felt unable to report them, or they have reported them, and nothing has happened. Those in charge, who are tasked with steadying the ship and trying to rebuild the organisation are left saying “if only we knew” or “why did nobody tell us?” 

Organisations who proactively engage in equality, diversity and inclusion work create cultures where staff can have courageous conversations on issues of equality, diversity and inclusion; where teams feel able to constructively challenge microaggressions, stereotypes and inappropriate terminology; where staff feel able to share and bring their whole selves to work, and where incidents are dealt with before they reach this point.   

Equality, diversity and inclusion training is not a quick fix to institutional inequalities. For example, informing people how to report incidents of discrimination or harassment will not help if the underlying reporting systems, policies, and procedures are not robust and managers aren’t trained as to how to respond effectively when they receive a report. 

Getting this work right involves a concerted effort from the top down and the bottom up. It involves honestly reviewing policies, procedures, and practices; it involves being clear about the organisation’s values and holding them at the heart of everything that it does; it involves consulting with and openly listening to staff, volunteers, customers and clients. However, any time invested is paid back in dividends. A Freedom of Information Request by Conservative Way Forward found that local authorities’ total spend on equality, diversity and inclusion initiatives last year was 0.02% of their total spend (BBC, 2024). As Shaun Davies, chair of the Local Government Association, stated, conversations about diversity schemes are a distraction from the real problems (BBC, 2024). Abandoning this work and reversing the progress that is being made from investment in recent years will only deepen the issues that our society is facing.

References

Braverman, S. (2023) Common Sense Policing. Home Office.

Casey, L (2023) An independent review into the standards of behaviour and internal culture of the Metropolitan Police Service.

Eardley, N. and Gilder, L. (2024). Do councils spend too much on diversity schemes? BBC. 

Equality Act 2010. London: HMSO.

Gordon, D (2016) Discrimination can be harmful to your mental health. UCLA. 

Leigh, S. (2022). Why diverse work environments are vital for staff retention. People Management. 

Levine, S. (2020) Diversity Confirmed to Boost Innovation and Financial Results. Forbes. 

Luasa, S et al (2023) A Systematic review protocol on workplace equality and inclusion practices in the healthcare sector. British Medical Journal. 

McVey, E. (2024). Minister for Common Sense’ Esther McVey says councils should spend less on diversity before asking for funding. MailOnline. 

UNISON. Councils Under Pressure (2023).

Zefferman, H. and Whannel, K. (2024). Budget: Cut consultants and diversity schemes to save cash, Hunt to tell councils. BBC.