Arts Taunton Equal Opportunities Policy
ARTS TAUNTON is committed to achieving equal opportunities, respects and values diversity, and is committed to applying equality of opportunity in all its practices and objectives/service delivery with regard to ethnic origin, age, gender, religion or belief, sexual orientation, marital status and disability or any other criterion not relevant to the point at issue.
Trustees have overall responsibility for the effective operation of this policy. However, all Arts Taunton trustees, volunteers, and service providers have a duty as part of their involvement with the organisation to do everything they can to ensure that the policy works in practice.
Equal Opportunities Policy Implementation
General activities of Arts Taunton:
Arts Taunton accepts responsibility to promote equal opportunities and challenge discrimination wherever it occurs. This document sets out the main consequences of this commitment and the action to be taken in order to achieve equal opportunities.
We will actively monitor all activities to ensure that we are serving the needs of all relevant communities and groups.
It is the responsibility of all staff, volunteers and service providers to ensure that no other committee member, volunteer or service provider receives less favourable treatment than another on the grounds of age, ethnic origin, disability, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marital status or gender.
We will encourage our committee, volunteers and the staff of any organisation working with us to take positive steps to ensure that the needs of minority communities and disadvantaged people are met.
This policy will be reviewed every three years or when new legislation requires it.
Physical access
Premises used for events such as public meetings will be reviewed regularly so that access by trustees, service providers and users with disabilities can be maintained and improved where necessary.
Recruitment and Employment Practices
As far as it lies within our power we will ensure that our recruitment processes are designed to ensure equal access for all.
We will design our trustee role or service provider specifications to allow for as wide as possible a range of transferable experience and qualifications to be taken into account.
Application forms will make it clear that life experience as well as formal qualifications and work experience is valid.
Arts Taunton’s trustee board and/or service provider network is never likely to be large enough to reflect the full diversity of all of our partners, network of supporters, etc. However, we will do everything we can to ensure that those with whom we partner/collaborate share our belief in the value of everyone and reflect that belief in their work.
Author JO’D created April 2019
Policies will be reviewed annually and updated if changes are necessary
