Performance and monitoring

We have a specific legal duty to publish information about people affected by our policies and practices. We fulfil this duty by publishing:

Performance Reports

We report on progress on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion activities to Corporate Infrastructure and Regulatory Services Committee twice a year.

View reports:

  • November 2023 (see item 139 Equality, Diversity and Inclusion mid-year update)
  • June 2023 (see item 115 Progress Update: Race Equality Action Plan)

Previous reports

  • Annual Reports from 2004 to 2017, or view our Equality Newsletter above.

People and Groups

  • The Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager co-ordinates and monitors our plans and activities and is the Council’s principal advisor on equality and diversity matters. They are supported by two Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Officers. The Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager reports to the Director of Legal and Democratic Services who reports to the Chief Executive.
  • Our elected member with the equality portfolio is Councillor Roger Croad.
  • In 2023 we launched an Equality Commission.
  • We have a group of external partners who represent many of the diverse interests within our communities. They are drawn from the voluntary and community sector and are known as the Equality Reference Group. Members advise and support our work on equality and diversity, providing ideas and challenging us on our performance.
  • We also have several staff diversity networks  including Race Equality, Neurodiversity, Ability in the Workplace, Menopause, and LGBT+.

Diversity Monitoring

Diversity monitoring guidance, published September 2016, explains how and why we may collect personal information about people for the purposes of diversity monitoring and communicating with service users.

Equality Objectives

We have set specific Equality Objectives to ensure we continue to improve outcomes for people. These objectives are developed in consultation with the Equality Reference Group.

Audits

Race Equality Audit

The Race Equality Audit was commissioned by Devon County Council’s (DCC) Leadership Group at the recommendation of the Lead Officer for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI).

The aim of the audit was to deepen the knowledge of Leadership Group members on EDI, to assist them in actively influencing and shaping the Council.

The Role of Impact Assessment in Effective Decision Making – Learning from Recent Judicial Reviews.

Between 2011 and 2012, Devon County Council was subjected to three Judicial Reviews which included challenges around the Public Sector Equality Duty and consultation. As a result an internal review was carried out to learn from these challenges and identify areas for improvement for the whole organisation. A series of workshops were held and eight learning points identified. As a result, a set of recommendations and a project plan have been established. The report, which captures the findings of the review and recommendations, published in September 2013, is being shared publicly so that other agencies can learn from our review.

Local Government Equality Framework

Devon County Council was confirmed at Level 3 of the old equality standard in October 2008 following a Diversity Peer Challenge. This means we are now at the Achieving Level of the Equality Framework for Local Government.

Audit Commission and ‘The Direction Of Travel’

In the Annual Audit and Inspection Letter March 2009, the Audit Commission writes:

“The Council has strengthened its approach to equalities and diversity and achieved level 3 of the local government equality standard in 2008. Successful initiatives include understanding the needs of gypsies, ravellers and migrants and the ‘narrowing the gap’ project in Ilfracombe, which aims to establish a sustainable model to make best use of the Council resources to support disadvantaged and vulnerable families to live longer, feel happier, be more resilient and more independent. There has been innovative engagement with specific groups, for example the senior council and youth council, who are producing outcomes such as better access to Tiverton School and providing feedback on the older people’s strategy. However, equality impact assessments are not yet producing outcomes for enough residents and the Council recognises it can improve systems to collect and use citizen feedback.”

The Audit Commission also carried out a comprehensive audit of our work on equality.