Women and Equality Unit Core Script

WEU and the WNC - working together

WEU is focussing on a number of key policy areas for women, working across Government Departments. This note sets out the key areas where we would particularly appreciate WNC assistance. We recognise, of course, that your resources (like ours) are limited, but I have tried to identify the areas where your advice would have high impact. Your help may be simply linking us up with the stakeholders most likely to be able to offer advice, through to bringing together NGOs to assist UK input to the international stage e.g. at CSW.

Women's Economic Participation

The Women and Work Commission chaired by Baroness Prosser has been the key focus of WEU work in this area recently. And a progress report one year on from the Women and Work Commission Towards a Fairer Future was published on 2 April 2007, describing a comprehensive and co-ordinated package of action across government.
The Women and Work Commission are considering the one year on report and will shortly comment on progress and areas for further action .

Latest actions:

Funding has been awarded to 13 projects designed to increase the number of senior jobs available on a part-time or job share basis, to a total value of nearly £500K.
An “exemplar employer” conference was held on 15 May 2007 (co-hosted with Opportunity Now) to share best practice on gender equality in the workplace.

Potential assistance from WNC would be on advancing the women's economic participation agenda beyond WWC - accessing your networks in order to test ideas/hold best practice sharing on:

Breaking down the barriers to Ethnic Minority women's employment and progression
Encouraging women's enterprise
Advancing the flexible working and work-life balance agenda - bringing together the needs of women workers and their employers
Reaching out to disadvantaged young women
Reaching out to mums of young children who are outside the labour market

Public Sector Duty on Gender Equality

A new public sector duty on gender equality (`gender equality duty') which requires public authorities to eliminate unlawful sex discrimination & harassment and promote equality of opportunity between men and women came into effect on 6 April 2007. It also covers contraventions or breaches to the 1970 Equal Pay Act. It will be effective in England, Scotland and Wales.
Secondary legislation bringing the Duty into effect - for public authorities in England - also came into effect on 6 April 2007. Public Authorities operating solely and exclusively in Wales are not covered by the secondary legislation.
Scottish specific duties will come into effect 29 June 2007.

A key role for the WNC (working through it's stakeholders) will be to ensure that the gender equality duty is taken seriously by Public Authorities and has the desired impact on employment, services and policy.

Women's Civic Participation

Women, and in particular, minority ethnic women are underrepresented in employment and in civic life.

WEU have the following work in hand:

Building a stronger evidence base so that BME women's needs are better understood, mainstreamed into policy making and ensuring action is taken where gaps exist.
Taking forward the recommendations from the recent PM event at No10 in partnership with Cohesion and Faith Unit - (reflected in the recent Preventing Extremism Action Plan published in April 07).
Feeding into second phase of the Office of the Third Sector's Social Enterprise Action Plan to ensure BME women's lens
Working with Social Enterprise London to carry out an in depth study of the barriers faced by BME ethnic women wishing to start up social enterprises and how these can be overcome (outcomes will feed into Social Enterprise Week Nov 07)
Together with Community Empowerment Division new work stream to encourage, equip and support women who are currently under represented in civic life to become more active in governance systems and structures.
Providing evidence and support on gender to the new Commission to improve the diversity of LA councillors (aim to increase women's representation).
New research with Fawcett Society to learn about BME women's routes into, through and out of decision making positions in public life.

Potentially WNC have a lot to offer on this agenda, including:

Encouraging more women into civic life
Breaking down the barriers BME face
Updating WNC's very useful booklet on women getting into public life
Attending our 'women take part' stakeholder events
Using your networks to promote the final outputs
Informing all their networks about the new councillors commission and advertising the online CLG discussion forum

Additionally, both Ruth Kelly and Meg Munn have said that they liked the Iraqi women's internship programme as it was tangible and had an impact on women's representation as well as furthering the UK's reputation aboard. If, after the review, WNC put a robust case to the new ministers there is a possibility they might champion across government for funding.

Also we normally have Top 6 organisation meetings (WI etc) every 6 months that the WNC Chair leads to the Minister for Women. WNC should be on stand-by to arrange following the Ministerial announcements which will follow the change in Premiership in late June.

Supporting Women who are particularly Vulnerable

Work is underway to develop a new programme of work within WEU on supporting women who are particularly vulnerable. As well as taking forward the continuing work on violence against women, this programme will include:

delivering better and safer places which enable women to feel safe and secure in their neighbourhoods and communities (better design, community safety & policing, regeneration are all issues which fall within this topic);
ensuring that women offenders receive services and support to enable them to live independently (eg responding to the Corston report on women offenders).

WNC input at this early stage would be very welcome in terms of prioritising, given limited resources, and refining:

Project on support for women trafficked for sexual exploitation - we plan to speak to the main stakeholders of course but WNC advice and input on some of the wider issues would be invaluable and you may be well placed to help co-ordinate consultation with the key stakeholders
Views/advice on the work we are developing with other parts of DCLG - Gypsy & Traveller women, Muslim women, housing & women
Young vulnerable women - we have particularly identified young women in care but WNC may have additional views
Debt/poverty and women

Your views on what we should be taking forward in terms of the better and safer places to live agenda identified in the Supporting Vulnerable women section of the Departmental Gender Equality Scheme would also be useful.

Equalities PSA for CSR07

A joint equalities PSA is under development as part of the work for the Spending Review. We have already discussed possible indicators for violence against women with Sylvia Walby and Liz Kelly. We will probably also look to WNC to help us consult stakeholders on the PSA.

Ann-Marie Field

1 June 2007

WNC/07/3/05