Equality, diversity and community cohesion

As an employer, service provider and provider of public functions we have responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 and Public Sector Equality Duty.

The Equality Act 2010 has defined nine protected characteristics:  age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation and marriage and civil partnership status

We have a duty to:

  • Eliminate discrimination
  • Advance equality of opportunity
  • Foster good relations between people (community cohesion)

Public authorities have specific duties under the Equality Act to help them comply with the public sector equality duty, including a requirement to prepare and publish equality objectives at least every four years. 

The county council's Equality Objectives were refreshed in April 2020, aligned to the council's corporate strategy; 'Our Vision for Lancashire'.

All our policies are informed by research and statistics which we gather and make available in our website.

Every year we report on how we comply with our equality duty:

Information on government policy, guidance, publications and consultations is available in the equality rights and citizenship section of the GOV.UK website.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission provides advice and guidance on rights, responsibilities and good practice based on:

Human rights legislation (Human Rights Act 1998)

Equality objectives 2020

The Public Sector Equality Duty required that by 6 April 2012 all public authorities publish at least one equality objective and that these objectives can last for up to four years. The country council refreshed its equality objectives in April 2020, with the objectives aligned to the corporate strategy.

Our corporate objectives We will be a county where Our equality objectives

Lancashire will be the place to live

- Children of all abilities do well in our first class schools, colleges and universities, gaining skills for life.

- People have good housing.

- People live healthier lives for longer.

- People can travel on good quality, reliable, public transport.

- We will work to narrow the gaps between different groups – e.g. in life expectancy between men and women or in educational attainment, where some groups are disadvantaged.

- We will improve the accessibility of our services, including through our digital offer.

- We will work in partnership to improve the quality of life for all residents and visitors.

- We will work with our partners to deliver effective support for the sustainable integration of refugees and asylum seekers.

Lancashire will be the place to work

- We support people of all ages to learn and develop their skills.

- Significant new, good job opportunities are created.

- We support and encourage business investment, innovation and growth.

- We aim to increase the earning power of our residents and communities.

- We build and develop effective infrastructure and transport links.

- We will use our influence with third party providers and partners to help ensure fair and inclusive employment practices.

- We will ensure that our investment in public infrastructure and transport actively considers the needs of all our communities.

Lancashire will be the place to prosper

- We invest in industry, and promote innovation to secure Lancashire's growth potential.

- Businesses are supported to start up, to thrive and to grow.

- We build on the strengths and resilience of local industry.

- Our residents, businesses and places are enabled to be more productive.

- We promote Lancashire as a national and global connected destination and a well performing place to do business.

- We will help make it easier for people to travel across Lancashire, bringing communities together and connecting people to services, jobs and learning opportunities.

- We will promote Lancashire as a cohesive county where people of different backgrounds get on well together.

Lancashire will be the place to visit

- We celebrate our beautiful, clean landscapes.

- We encourage the visitor economy and the opportunities for growth.

- People enjoy our culture and heritage, diverse communities and local attractions.

- We promote our wonderful sporting attractions and hidden gems.

- We will promote and celebrate the diversity of Lancashire's population.

- We will promote the inclusiveness of the county council's cultural attractions and facilities.

Lancashire will be a place where everyone acts responsibly

- We will equip our most vulnerable people with the support and skills they need to do more for themselves.

- We commission, procure and provide services that provide maximum benefit to Lancashire residents.

- We recruit and retain a workforce that meets service needs.

- We prevent waste and use money wisely.

- We learn from others.

- We will ensure we are a fair and inclusive employer in our recruitment, employment, career development and retention activities.

- We will improve the diversity of our workforce at all levels and narrow our gender pay gap.

- We will work with our partners to build stronger, safer communities by tackling hate crime, radicalisation, extremism and intolerance of any kind.

- We will ensure our service developments are informed by information we hold and engagement with service users and communities to best meet need.

- We will consider the impact on groups with protected characteristics as a key part of our decision making process.