Equality and diversity

What is equality and diversity?

Equality is all about making sure everyone is treated fairly and given the same life opportunities. It is not about treating everyone the same as they may have different needs to achieve the same outcomes.

Diversity is about recognising and valuing individual differences and raising awareness about them.

It is important to look at both aspects. There is a danger in looking only at individuals as a lot of discrimination is based on collective characteristics such as colour or disability. For example we would not assume all black people have the same needs but we need to be aware that people who discriminate against black people will not take individual characteristics into consideration.

Our vision

We want Portsmouth City Council to be viewed as a trusted and valued organisation which genuinely acts in the best interests of the people of Portsmouth.

The Equality and Diversity Strategy is a plan to link this vision with the every day activities of the local authority which recognises the diverse needs of residents and visitors. It applies to all directorates, corporate priority teams and elected members as well as being shared with those who help to deliver quality services such as contractors and partners. We will know we have achieved this vision when we can measure:

increased take up of services by specific groups such as people with disabilities, women and older people
positive action initiatives to provide specialist services or to ensure equal access to the same life opportunities based on researched need
Residents’ Survey and other surveys indicating greater satisfaction by equality strand groups
more information produced in plain English and other appropriate languages and formats
survey results telling us that our community relations are good and people agree that they live in a city where everyone feels that they belong