Easy Read - Draft Equality Action Plan
Draft Equality Action Plan 2023 - 2027
This Action Plan says what we will do in the next 5 years to improve our services and area.
This includes people who:
• are different ages
• have different religious beliefs
• have different politics
• are married, divorced or single
• fancy and love different people
• are from different countries, speak different languages or look different
• are men or women
• do and do not have disabilities
• do and do not care for others.
The above points are Section 75 groups in rules which everyone has to follow called the Northern Ireland Act.
Actions in this plan come out of feedback from people like you who use our services; research; and council’s priorities.
This plan looks at:
1: Good Leadership (telling workers how to get things done)
2: Improvement and Change
3: Healthy and Included People
4: Climate Change and where we live
Good Leadership
We will:
• Train Elected Members (people you voted for to decide what your community needs) about treating people equally.
• Have a ‘Diversity Ambassador’; who speaks up on Diversity matters.
• All services will contain actions to involve people and treat them equally.
• Share good practices and train staff on writing policies and procedures.
• Council surveys asking your thoughts will include equality and good relations questions.
• Our leaders will check for service issues or barriers and work towards fixing them.
We will test changes to make sure they do not create issues or barriers.
Improvement and Change
We will:
• Check our buildings and services every year using a form called “Every Customer Counts”. We will make plans to fix issues or barriers that we find.
• Ask service users about ways to improve our services.
• Check everyone can use our Leisure Centres.
• Improve the play parks we have in rural areas.
• Make sure all Council events have changing places toilets available.
• Tell you where the mobile changing places toilet will be.
• Help people living with disabilities to gain work experience and skills.
• Increase the number of Council’s Easy Read documents.
• Include subtitles in online videos and social media information.
![[23 A group of boats in the marina]](https://www.causewaycoastandglens.gov.uk/uploads/general/24_DEAP_23.png)
• Look at possible improvements for our Marinas.
• Ask what barriers people in the LGBTQIA+ community face.
• Act to encourage younger people to work for Council.
• Improve our website.
• Improve understanding about Hate Crime in our borough.
• Look at car parking provision in Council owned car parks and check there is enough accessible parking.
• Increase the number of changing places toilets in the borough by 2.
• Look at how accessible Household Recycling Centres are and see what improvements can be made.
• Look at how accessible Public Conveniences are and see what improvements can be made.
• Check refuse collection services and work out the best way to tell people about collection day changes.
• Train staff on ‘Just a Minute’ (JAM) Awareness.
• Train staff who sit on interview panels how best to support individuals with disabilities.
• All surveys must be sent to the Equality Forum, Youth Voice and Age-friendly Forum.
• Look at possible leisure centre discounts for older people.
• Provide a map of the building to support Neurodiverse service users starting with Leisure Centres.
• Check if money spent can be shown by the place (town, village). To help Elected Members (people you voted for to decide what your community needs) to make decisions.
• Make a trans equality policy for Elected Members decision.
• Improve information for sign language and hearing-impaired users.
• Improve visual signage.
• Achieve an Autism Impact award at the 3 Main Leisure Sites.
• Make a Changing Places facility at Megaw Park, Ballymoney.
• Improve inclusive cycling with a cycle hire scheme.
• Work towards becoming an Autism Friendly Borough. (a place where people with Autism can be themselves)
• Improve Mental Well-Being by following the Local Government plan.
• Change the Special Leave Policy to include Bereavement.
• Improve employment skills for individuals within the Section 75 groups.
Healthy and Included People
We will:
• Look for ways to help Elected Members understand the needs of people in the Section 75 groupings.
• Increase the information we hold about staff in the Section 75 groupings.
• Share more information across Council.
• Look at ways to support members of the LGBTQIA+ community.
• Check that family-friendly policies are available to all staff.
• Hold information about the condition of our buildings, land and equipment to help speed up repairs and maintenance work.
• Look at how we measure with other NI Councils.
• Check for Health and Safety Issues and develop a repair schedule.
• Hold information about private water supplies on our computer systems to speed up repairs.
• Help people to apply for house changes on-line to building control. Improve by 10% in 2024.
• Hold information on coastal management.
• Hold information on sports clubs in the borough.
All surveys must be sent to the Equality Forum, Youth Voice and Age-friendly Forum.
• Improve operations in Estates.
• Check with the Town Centre Forum to understand what businesses and visitors need.
• Ask Leisure centre members who leave why they are leaving to see if there are common problems.
Climate Change and where we live
We will:
• Look at ways to reduce anti-social behaviour where you live.
• Train staff about hate crime.
• Improve the lights in Car parks with poor lighting.
• Speak to young people about new sports.
• Provide information about different communities to schools.
• Provide arts events and projects which can be attended by people from all Section 75 groups.
• Provide museums services for people from all Section 75 groups.
• Work with others to make a 5-year Age Friendly Plan.
• Tell people how to pay for parking using their mobile phone.
• Reduce the energy we use and help our planet live.