Hardship Fund Scheme Equality Screening
S75 Equality And Good Relations Screening Form
General Information: Project
Is this an existing, revised or a new function, service, policy, procedure, project, strategy, plan or guidance? New
Operational Area: Community & Culture
Title: Hardship Fund Scheme
Brief Summary:
The Department for Communities is providing funding to Councils for a Hardship Scheme to alleviate financial hardship for the most vulnerable. Council has worked with the Anti-Poverty Stakeholder Steering Group to develop a collaborative and co-ordinated approach to provide direct support to those most vulnerable in experiencing financial difficulty.
What is it trying to achieve? (intended aims and outcomes)
The aim of the scheme as directed by the Department for Communities (DfC) is to provide emergency cost of living assistance to the most vulnerable people in the borough.
Who owns and who implements each element of the function, service, policy, procedure, project, strategy, plan or guidance?
Community Development section within the Community & Culture service area of the Leisure & Development Directorate own the scheme and have developed it through a co-design process with the Anti-Poverty Stakeholder Steering Group.
Other policies etc. which have a bearing on this function, service, policy, procedure, project, strategy, plan or guidance?
Strategies:
• A Better Future Together – Causeway Coast and Glens Community Plan 2017-2020 Delivery Plan for Causeway Coast and Glens Community Plan
• Causeway Coast and Glens Community Development Strategy 2023-26
• Executive Summary for the Anti-Poverty Strategy (NI) Dec 2020
• Building Inclusive Communities; DfC Strategy 2020-25
Available Evidence
Evidence to help inform the screening process may take many forms. Public authorities should ensure that their screening decision is informed by relevant data.
What evidence/information (both qualitative and quantitative have you gathered to inform this function, service, policy, procedure, project, strategy, plan or guidance? Specify details for relevant Section 75 categories.
Quantitative data was accessed from the following sources:
• NI Census in 2011
• NISRA Poverty Grouped Years (administrative geographies) Individuals in Relative Poverty (LGD) 2017-19
• NISRA Family Resources Survey: Northern Ireland 2019-20
https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/system/files/publications/communities/frs-201920.pdf
• NISRA Houses Below Average Income: Northern Ireland 2019-20 https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/publications/households-below-average-income-northern-ireland-201920
• Housing Executive Estimates of fuel poverty in Northern Ireland in 2019 - Modelled using data from the Northern Ireland House Condition Survey 2016
• Joseph Rowntree Foundation – UK Poverty 2022 The Essential Guide to Understanding Poverty in the UK https://www.jrf.org.uk/report/uk-poverty-2022
• Measuring Poverty 2020: A report of the Social Metrics Commission
• Recommendations for an Anti-Poverty Strategy: Report of the Expert Advisory Panel (Dec 2020)
• A minimum income standard for rural households Joseph Rowntree Foundation 2010
https://www.jrf.org.uk/report/minimum-income-standard-rural-households
• Key Rural Issues, Northern Ireland 2023 https://www.daera-ni.gov.uk/sites/default/files/publications/daera/Key%20Rural%20Issues%202023.pdf
• "Children in low income families: local area statistics" (DWP/HMRC March 2022). https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/children-in-low-income-families-local-area-statistics
• “Northern Ireland Poverty and Income Inequality Report 2021-22” (Department for Communities 30 March 2023) https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/news/northern-ireland-poverty-and-income-inequality-report-2021-22-released
• A House of Commons Library Research Briefing, “Rising cost of living in the UK”(published 2nd June 2023) https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9428/#:~:text=Increases%20in%20the%20costs%20of,%2C%20a%2045%2Dyear%20high
• “Poverty in Northern Ireland 2022” https://www.jrf.org.uk/report/poverty-northern-ireland-2022
• June 2022 National Energy Action/ LucidTalk Northern Ireland-wide representative poll to evaluate the impacts of rising energy prices on households. https://www.nea.org.uk/fuel-poverty-map/fuel-poverty-in-ni/
• Child Poverty Action Group (October 2022) https://cpag.org.uk/sites/default/files/CPAG-Poverty-173-rising-fuel-poverty.pdf
• University of York’s Social Policy Unit forecast https://www.york.ac.uk/media/business-society/research/CPAG-Poverty-173-rising-fuel-poverty.pdf
• Age UK (May 2022) https://www.ageuk.org.uk/globalassets/age-uk/documents/reports-and-publications/reports-and-briefings/safe-at-home/estimating-the-impact-of-rising-prices-on-older-households-in-the-uk-in-2022-23-may-2022.pdf
• A series of focus group discussions took place with Community Development Initiative (LCDI), Community Advice Causeway, Vineyard Compassion (Causeway Foodbank & Reset Social Supermarket), Ballycastle, Ballymoney & Roe Valley Foodbanks, St Vincent DePaul, Salvation Army, Northern Health & Social Care Trust, Western Health & Social Care Trust, PHA.
Section 75 Category
Details of Evidence/Information:
Religious Beliefs
The 2021 Census outlined:
Religion / religion brought up in:
Census 2021 CC&G Borough Council Northern Ireland
Roman Catholic 40.12% 45.70%
Protestant & Other Christian
(including Christian related) 51.17% 43.48%
Other Religions 0.78% 1.50%
None/Not stated 7.94% 9.32%
In terms of religion or religion brought up in the 2021 Census indicates that our resident’s religious beliefs are comparable to those in Northern Ireland in that there are 2 predominant groupings ie Roman Catholic and Protestant. However we also have a number of individuals (7.94%) who do not practice a specific religion or who do not wish to be grouped into a specific religion. In addition we have a small number of individuals who practice other religions.
Political Opinion
The Northern Ireland Life and Times Survey (2021) provides the following information on the political parties people in Northern Ireland feel closest to (this information is not available at local government level) :
%
DUP/Democratic Unionist Party 12
Sinn Féin 13
Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) 13
Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) 13
Alliance Party 19
Green Party 5
Other Party 4
None of these 11
Other answer 1
Don't know 9
Racial Group
On Census Day 21 March 2021 the resident population was:
Census 2021 CC&G Borough Council Northern Ireland
White 98.55% 96.55%
Irish Traveller 0.03% 0.14%
Roma 0.01% 0.08%
Indian 0.15% 0.52%
Chinese 0.22% 0.50%
Filipino 0.10% 0.23%
Pakistani 0.03% 0.08%
Arab 0.03% 0.10%
Other Asian 0.10% 0.28%
Black African 0.12% 0.42%
Black Other 0.04% 0.16%
Mixed 0.51% 0.76%
Other ethnicities 0.11% 0.19%
Poverty rates between ethnic groups vary significantly, with some groups at a much higher risk of poverty than others. Ethnic minorities are also more likely to have higher rates of in-work poverty and child poverty. The percentage of the population of Causeway Coast and Glens that is from a racial group other than White was 1.45% in the 2021 Census and barriers to accessing services for people from an ethnic minority background particularly the language barrier are an important consideration in delivering the project.
Age
Age: (NISRA Census 2021 – Table MS-A02)
CC&G Borough Council Northern Ireland
0-4 years 7,973 (5.62%) 113,820 (5.98%)
5-9 years 8,878 (6.26%) 124,475 (6.54%)
10-14 years 9,113 (6.43%) 126,918 (6.67%)
15-19 years 8,326 (5.87%) 113,203 (5.95%)
20-24 years 7,873 (5.55%) 111,386 (5.85%)
25-29 years 7,713 (5.44%) 116,409 (6.12%)
30-34 years 8,460 (5.97%) 126,050 (6.62%)
35-39 years 8,528 (6.02%) 127,313 (6.69%)
40-44 years 8,513 (6.01%) 122,163 (6.42%)
45-49 years 9,322 (6.58%) 121,670 (6.39%)
50-54 years 10,412 (7.35%) 130,967 (6.88%)
55-59 years 10,150 (7.16%) 129,276 (6.79%)
60-64 years 9,171 (6.47%) 113,049 (5.94%)
65-69 years 7,769 (5.48%) 93,464 (4.91%)
70-74 years 6,990 (4.93%) 83,467 (4.39%)
75-79 years 5,659 (3.99%) 66,377 (3.49%)
80-84 years 3,718 (2.62%) 43,776 (2.30%)
85-89 years 2,126 (1.50%) 25,879 (1.36%)
90+ years 1,051 (0.74%) 13,512 (0.71%)
TOTAL Population 141,745 1,903,174
Age can have an impact on likelihood to experience poverty. The age groups for adults that have the highest poverty rates in the UK are 16–24 (22%), 30–44 (21–22%), 60–64 (23%) and 85+ (22%).
Marital Status
Marital status by former legacy Council area (most recent figures available from Census 2011):
Census 2011 Ballymoney BC Coleraine BC Limavady BC Moyle DC
Single 32.68% 34.78% 36.64% 34.96%
Married 52.52% 48.88% 48.94% 49.03%
Civil Partnership 0.07% 0.06% 0.08% 0.08%
Separated 3.13% 3.15% 3.58% 3.66%
Divorced/Civil
Partnership Dissolved 5.23% 6.13% 4.99% 5.11%
Widowed/Surviving
Civil Partner 6.39% 7.00% 5.78% 7.15%
Typically lone parent families have a higher prevalence of poverty than other family types. Anecdotally local foodbanks report an increase in young single males presented for support.
Sexual Orientation
There are no specific figures available on how many people may be Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual or Trans-gender or Trans-sexual (LGBT) specific to the Council area.
The Northern Ireland Life and Times Survey (2021) provides the following information on the sexual orientation of people in Northern Ireland (this information is not available at local government level):
%
I am ‘gay’ or ‘lesbian’ (homosexual) 3
I am heterosexual or ‘straight’ 94
I am bi-sexual 2
Other 1
In addition the NI Rainbow Project estimates between 6-10% of any given population could be considered as LGBTQ+.
Men and Women Generally Gender:
(Census 2021 – Table MS-A07)
CC&G Borough Council Northern Ireland
Male 69,848 (49.28%) 936,132 (49.19%)
Female 71,898 (50.72%) 967,043 (50.81%)
Lone parent families, which are predominantly headed by a female, have the highest poverty rate of any family type and this is an important consideration in developing the Action Plan. Anecdotally local foodbanks report an increase in young single males presented for support.
Dependants
The Census information in 2011 & 2021 showed:
People With or Without Dependents
(Census 2021 – Table MS-B12):
Census 2011 CC&G Borough Council Northern Ireland
Number of households (2021 stats) 57,576 768,810
Households with dependent children
(2011 stats) 15,597 (28.37%) 261,251 (36.19%)
The poverty rate among carers continues to be above those who are not carers. Almost 1 in 3 children in the UK are living in poverty (31%). Nearly half of children in lone-parent families live in poverty, compared with 1 in 4 of those in couple families. Of the working-age adults, lone parents are by far the most likely of any family type to be struggling with poverty. The child poverty rate for children in families with three or more children is almost twice as high as the rate for children in one- or two-child families (47% compared with 24%). This means around 1 in 4 children in one- or two-children families are in poverty, compared with almost 1 in 2 children in families with three or more children.
Disability
People with a Disability/People Without: (Census 2021 Tables MS-D03 and MS-D04)
Census 2021 CC&G Borough Council Northern Ireland
People with a long-term
condition/illness 30,656 (53.24%) 423,945 (55.14%)
People Without 90,793 (64.05%) 1,243,371 (65.33%)
Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council Long-term Condition
Deafness or partial hearing loss 8,914 (6.29%)
Blindness or partial sight 2,560 (1.81%)
Mobility or dexterity that requires the use of a wheelchair 2,145 (1.51%)
Mobility or dexterity that limits physical activities 15,951 (11.25%)
Intellectual or learning disability 1,340 (0.95%)
Intellectual or learning difficulty 4,334 (3.06%)
Autism or Asperger syndrome 2,282 (1.61%)
An emotional, psychological or mental health condition 11,787 (8.32%)
Frequent periods of confusion or memory loss 2,681 (1.89%)
Long term pain or discomfort 17,396 (12.27%)
Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing 14,525 (10.25%)
Other condition 13,214 (9.32%)
Source: NISRA, Census 2021, tables MS-D03, MS-D04 through to MS-D16
Disabled people face a higher risk of poverty. The poverty rate for disabled people has remained broadly constant at around a third since 2013/14. The difference is particularly stark for working-age adults: those who are disabled are more than twice as likely to live in poverty than those who are not (38% and 17% respectively).
In 2019/20 in Northern Ireland, 96% of households with no disabled adults were food secure, compared to 88% of households with a disabled adult, and 83% of households with a disabled adult under pension age.
Screening Questions
1. What is the likely impact on equality of opportunity for those affected by this function, service, policy, procedure, project, strategy, plan or guidance?
Section 75 Category - Positive impact (it could benefit) Neutral Negative impact (it could disadvantage)
Gender
Women Positive
Men Positive
Transgender men/women Positive
Other please specify --
The impact is positive as the project will provide support equally regardless of gender.
Race
The categories used in the Race section are those used in the 2011 census. Consideration should be given to the needs of specific communities within the broad categories.
Asian Positive
Black Positive
Chinese Positive
Mixed race Positive
Other please specify Positive
The project could have a minor positive impact on equality of opportunity between people of different race, by tackling barriers to people from minority ethnic backgrounds and people with a first language other than English being able to access services.
Disability
Long term health impairment could include mental health problems, asthma, heart conditions, chronic fatigue etc.
Positive
Reason: The project could positively impact people with a disability by ensuring that poverty intervention services are accessible and targeted at people with a disability as one of the priority groupings.
Sexual orientation
Heterosexual, lesbian, gay men, bisexual, others
Positive
Reason: The impact is positive as the project will provide support equally regardless of sexual orientation.
Age
Older People Positive
Younger people and children Positive
Reason: The impact is positive as the project will provide equality of opportunity for people of all ages.
Political Opinion
Positive
Reason: The impact is positive as the project will provide support equally regardless of political opinion.
Religious Belief
Positive
Reason: The impact is positive as the project will provide support equally regardless of religious belief.
Martial Status
Positive
Reason: The project may have a minor positive impact on lone parents as they have been identified as a grouping that services should be targeted at.
Dependants
Positive
Reason: The project may have a positive impact on people with dependents as they have been identified as a grouping that services should be targeted at.
Screening Questions
2. Are there opportunities to better promote equality of opportunity for people within any of the Section 75 categories?
Gender
(Women, Men, Transgender men/women , Other please specify)
Yes. The project supports vulnerable people in any category and so may support greater equality for people within this category.
Race
The categories used in the Race section are those used in the 2011 census. Consideration should be given to the needs of specific communities within the broad categories.
(Asian, Black, Chinese, Mixed race, White, Other please specify)
Yes. The project could improve equality of opportunity between people of different race, by tackling barriers to people from minority ethnic backgrounds and people with a first language other than English being able to access services.
Disability
Long term health impairment could include mental health problems, asthma, heart conditions, chronic fatigue etc.
Yes. The project could improve equality of opportunity for people with a disability by ensuring that poverty intervention services are accessible and targeted at people with a disability as one of the priority groupings.
Sexual orientation
Heterosexual, lesbian, gay men, bisexual, others
Yes. The project supports vulnerable people in any category and so may support greater equality for people within this category.
Age
Older People, Younger people and children
Yes. The project supports vulnerable people in any category and so may support greater equality for people within this category.
Political Opinion
Yes. The project supports vulnerable people and in any category and so may support greater equality for people within this category.
Religious Belief
Yes. The project supports vulnerable people and in any category and so may support greater equality for people within this category.
Marital Status
Yes. The project supports vulnerable people and in any category and so may support greater equality for people within this category.
Dependants
Yes. The project could improve equality of opportunity for people with dependants by ensuring that poverty intervention services are accessible and targeted at carers, and lone parents.
Screening Questions
3. To what extent is the policy likely to impact on good relations between people of different religious belief, political opinion or racial group?
Section 75 Category: Religious Belief
Level of impact: None. The project is unlikely to have an impact on good relations between people of different religious belief.
Section 75 Category: Political Opinion
Level of impact: None. The project is unlikely to have an impact on good relations between people of different political opinion.
Section 75 Category: Racial Group
Level of impact: None. The project is unlikely to have an impact on good relations between people of different racial groups.
Screening Questions
4. Are there opportunities to better promote good relations between people of different religious belief, political opinion or racial group?
Religious Belief: No. The scheme is unlikely to provide opportunities to better promote good relations between people of different religious beliefs.
Political Opinion: No. The scheme is unlikely to provide opportunities to better promote good relations between people of different political opinions.
Racial Group: No. The scheme is unlikely to provide opportunities to better promote good relations between people of different racial groups.
Additional Considerations
Generally speaking people can fall into more than one Section 75 category. Taking this into consideration, are there any potential impacts of the function, service, policy, procedure, project, strategy, plan or guidance on people with multiple identities? (For example: disabled minority ethnic people, disabled women, young Protestant men, young lesbians, gay and bisexual people.)
The project will benefit all groups within the Section 75 categories, including those with multiple identities.
Provide details of data on the impact of the function, service, policy, procedure, project, strategy, plan or guidance on people with multiple identities. Specify the relevant Section 75 categories concerned.
N/A
Disability Considerations
Is there an opportunity to better promote positive attitudes towards disabled people by altering this function, service, policy, procedure, project, strategy, plan or guidance?
No.
Is there an opportunity to encourage participation by disabled people in public life by altering this function, service, policy, procedure, project, strategy, plan or guidance?
No.
Screening Decision
Likely Impact: Minor
If the decision is to subject the policy to an equality impact assessment (i.e. likely impact – Major), please provide details of the reasons for this:
N/A
If the decision is not to conduct an equality impact assessment (i.e. likely impact = Minor) the Council should consider if the policy should be mitigated or an alternative policy be introduced:
Minor positive impact on certain Section 75 groupings in line with DfC policy direction.
If the decision is not to conduct an equality impact assessment (i.e. likely impact = None), please provide details of the reasons for this:
N/A
Mitigation
When the Council concludes that the likely impact is ‘Minor’ and an equality impact assessment is not to be conducted, the Council may consider mitigation to lessen the severity of any equality impact, or the introduction of an alternative policy to better promote equality of opportunity or good relations.
Can the policy/decision be amended or changed or an alternative policy introduced to better promote equality of opportunity and/or good relations?
No
If YES, give the reasons to support your decision, together with the proposed changes/amendments or alternative policy:
N/A
Timetabling And Prioritising
If the policy/decision has been ‘screened in’ for equality impact assessment, then please answer the following questions to determine its priority for timetabling the equality impact assessment.
On a scale of 1 to 3, with 1 being the lowest priority and 3 the highest, assess the policy in terms of its priority for equality impact assessment.
Priority Criterion
Rating (1 to 3)
Effect on equality of opportunity and good relations N/A
Social Need N/A
Effect on people’s daily lives N/A
Relevance to the Council’s functions N/A
Monitoring
Please outline proposals for future monitoring of the policy/decision:
TThe Hardship Fund is a one off programme and will be monitored and evaluated at project end.