Equality and diversity

What is equality?

Equality is about making sure people are treated fairly and given fair chances. Equality is not about treating everyone in the same way, but it recognises that their needs are met in different ways.

Equality focuses on those areas covered by law, namely the key areas of age, disability, gender, race, religion or belief and sexual orientation.

Diversity is about valuing individual difference. Diversity is a given and not an option or something to decide to have or not to have. Where there are two or more people, you have diversity. Diversity is difference and we are all different from each other. Our differences include family background, age, gender, ethnic origin, physical abilities, qualities and appearance, nationality, sexual orientation, educational background and marital status.

A diversity approach aims to recognise value and manage differences in order to make society a better place for everyone.

Why is Equality and Diversity important?

As a Local Authority, it is important we recognise that our community and service users come from different backgrounds as mentioned above and work towards creating a working culture and practice that recognises respects, values and harnesses difference for the benefit of our organisation and service users. By understanding differences and encouraging others to do the same, we can make Harrow a better place for our communities and service users to live and work in.