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MAKES AWINNING TEAM
EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES UNIT
OEPART ..IE .... T
OF
T ill:
ENVIRONMENT
Dea r Colleague
We have co mp iled this folder of information OIS a practical guide to equality of opportunity
in OOE . We hope th at it w ill answe r immediate queries . If th ere is furthe r in formation or
OIlOlOis ta nce yo u need w e will be happy to help .
Equal Opp o rtuni ties Un it
Augus t 199 6
In trod uction
1
Rig hts and Responsibilities o f Staff
3
Monitoring
5
Harassmen t and Discrimination
7
Disability
"
9
II
Ethnic Minorit ies and Relig ion
11
<. e nder
13
Carers
15
Flexib le Working Arrangements
19
Equal Opportunity Unit Con tact Names
21
[ qual Opportunity liaison Offic ers
23
!'uaust 996
'The Depa rtment of the Environment is an equal oppor tunity employe r ' - you may ha ve
seen this qu oted in various bu lletins. Th is is a commitment which has bee n mad e at the
highest levels in the Department, and the Eq ua l Op portun ities Un it is responsible for
promoting equality o foppo rtun ity to strengthen and e" pa nd that commitme nt throughout
the Departmen t. Th e Unit carries out a wide range of fu nct ions which are rep orted
regularly to the Managem en t Board .
Th is lea flet explains wh at being an equ al opportunity employer mea ns, what ou r eq ua l
opporh mit y polky i.; and ho w l"veryon ", needs to be involved, ind ucting you . It also
provides p ractica l gu idan ce and gives details of so u rces o f hel p or ass istance which could
be of benef it to anyone.
Wh,lt is an equal opportun ity em ployer?
An equal opportunity emp loyer aims to ensure that all staff are treated fairly and given
equality of op po rtu ni ty to d evelop their skills and contribute to teamwork.
Wh,Il is the po licy?
"
The Depa rtment's equal opportunities policy is that all staff. whether full or part-time,
no ma tter what the ir sex, sexua l orientation or marital status, race, na tiona lity, ethn ic or
na tiona l origi n, religion or d isab ility wfil be treated on the same basis, in fair competition.
\!\!hy
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po licy?
The pol icy evolved fro m the need to comp ly wi th legislation to elim ina te unfair
discrimina tion and p rejudice in all aspects o f staff management. This no t only makes
sense in terms of social justice for individuals, it also makes sou nd business se nse. There
are obvious ad vantages in us ing the d iverse skills and experience o f all staff, w hatever
their backgroun d, to meet the needs of the Departm en t.
Chapter 1 Section 13 of the St.lff Hand book ou tlines the law and se ts the scene for staff to
help crea te and maintain a fair working env iron men t. Th is is accom pa nied by guidance
on tackling complaints about the behav iour of colleag ues and the p rocedure for ma king
forma l complaints where d iscrimination may have occu rred.
Some groups in particu la r ha ve face d disc ri mina tio n such as women, people w ith
disabilities and ethnic minorities, bu t they're nol the only ones. All staff hav e certain
rights as well as res ponsib ili ties. O ur poli cy is th erefore about fair tre atment fo r
every on e.
·11
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The Unit pubfishcs an annual report whi ch con ta ins inform<'ltion about the Un it's activit ies
and the part other s also play to promote equality of opportunity. It also highlights the
monitoring and analysis of staff data w hich is carried out. Cop ies of the Unit' s an nual
report arc available to a ll staff
August 1996
Whdt':<-
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As a member of staff you have an importan t role to p lay rega rd less of your grad e or
employm ent statu s. In particu lar ensure that you r de alings with colleagues and the
public are cond ucted fairly and reasonably; do follow p roced u res tha t are in trod uced to
promote equ al ity of opportunity; make d ear you r op position to any harassmen t or
d iscrimina tion which you ma y see and if m."Cessary report it to your line mana ger; and
don 't make assumptions abou t colleag ues based on limited knowled ge or on their
apparent bac kg roun d .
\Nh,ll should I do a-, <l line man,lgl' r?
If you ma nage staff you must ensure that they too are aw are of their responsibilities . To
be a good manager you must have a proper und erstanding 01 the Department's equal
opportu nities po licy and act on it. This mea ns giving all staff a fair cha nce to d evelop
their strengths, skills and experienc e and to overcome their weaknesses. The scope for
poten tial sho uld never be overlooked; any special needs shou ld be explored. Advice is
a vailable from the Equal Opportun ities Un it. An eq ua l opportunities training course for
managers is run by ETS, and the subject is also covered in other tra ining course s such as
Staff Repo rting and App raisal.
I
Wll.lt is the ro le o f th e De pa rtm e n t?
The Department is committed to p rovid ing every employee with equality of op po rtu nity,
wo rking en vironment free from di scrimination and harassmen t a nd a complain ts
proced ure for dealing with an y d iscrimination or harassment in the work p lace.
.1
August 1996
I •
W ha t is m onito ri ng?
Mon itoring is the p rocess of chec kin g the effectiveness o f an Equa l Opportun ities
Pro gramme .
Wh at is the aim of monito ring?
The aim is to ensure that we mee t our lega l requirements, and to try and ensure that we
employ a workfo rce which is representa tive o f the co m m unity as a w hole. Fu rther mo re,
we ha ve to sho w that we com ply w ith the th ree Civil Serv ice Prog rammes of Action for
eq ua lity of opportunity.
What are these three program mes?
They a re for Women (launched in 19S1 and re-lau nched in 1992), for people of ethnic
min ority origin (launched in 1990), and for Disabled Peop le (launched in 19901).
What do we mo n itor?
The info rma tion wh ich w e monitor fda)es to ge nder, ethnic o rigin, disability, part time
wo rking, an d age of sta ff Only na med :,J:a ff in the Unit have ace..-ss to per sonal informa tion
on eth nic or igin and disabilit y.
what do we look for?
In monitoring. we look for patterns in recruitment and promotion rates, an nual report
and promotab ility ma rkings, and performa nce in the ad vertising scheme.
W hat da t.l source!'; are used for monito ring?
The main source is the Department 's comp uterised person nel information system, SOLIS.
Othe r sources a re pr omo tion board reports, information of ASR and Pro mo tab ility
Mar kings, on the Advertising scheme, and on Spec ial Bonus award s, recruitment da ta,
and the Cabinet Office' s service-wide da tabase . MANDATE. The Unit collects its own
confide ntial informa tion on ethn ic or igin and d isability.
what inform.rtion is produ..cd?
We produce an Ann ual Report, wh ich includes tables and gra phs on composition of
staff-in-pos t. results of recruitment campaigns and promo tion board s, a nd ana lysis of
the a d ve rti sing sc h c'me a n d t ra w ls.
In a dd iti o n, w e prod u ce a na ly si s for indiv id ual
Directorat es and Commands. The pur pose of all this is to a nalyse the position and
iden tify an y trends or ano malies. We do no t reveal the Individ ua l identities of sta ff, we
give statistical da ta in a format which ma intains personal conf identialit y,
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Who do we provide information for?
Information is provided for the Department's Management Boord. the EOlOs (Equal
Opportunities Liaison Officers) in each Directorate, the Trade Union Side . ou r colleagues
in the Personnel Directorate. Cabinet Office, Training Division, Managers and staff
gene ra lly, and outside organisations, such as Opportunity 2000.
rion a-, to cnnfidenfiahtv or inform linn?
Information concerning your ethnic origin, an d whether of not yo u have a d is.ability, can
only be seen by named staff in the Equal Opportunities Unit , and not by any other sta ff
in the Department. Personal details from the d atabase are not available to anyone else in
any personnel or line management processes.
I
1 _ _ . ..... IDIU
Why d oes the De par tm en t ha ve a policy on harassm ent?
Becau:>e 50me for ms of harassment 'He c rirnina l o ffence>, .U1d harassmen t hi harmfu l.
Ha rassm ent can ha ve a significant im pact on the efficien cy of staff and im pose subs tantial
costs on the em ployer. Preven ting har assmen t is therefore an importan t part of good
management practice because w he n employees are treated wi th respect they are mo re
likely to work to their fu ll po ten tial. An y com plain ts of harass me nt wi ll be taken very
seriously and co uld resu lt in d lscjplinorv action if pro ved .
Wh at do I do if I fed I have been discriminated
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o r harassed ?
The Departme n t does not tolerate harassme nt or d iscrimination of an y em ployee on the
grounds of ge nder, race, scxu..l or ienta tio n, dis.:l bility, religion, o r part-time wo rking.
All sta ff have to coo pe rate with each other in the interests of the Department and to
observe the Equa l Opportunities policy. If di fficu lties Mise w hich you canno t resolv e
wit h th e person who yo u feel is ha rassing yo u, spea k to you r line man ager in the first
instance. where th is is ina ppropria te yo u can app roach a more senior membe r of stilff,
the Equal Opportuni ties Unit, a Staff Counsellor (Welfare) or a Trad ... Union representative.
/
If th e mailer ca nnot be resolved th rough in formal d iscussi on, a fonnal com plaint may be
the next step. Details of the proced u res are in Cha pte r 1 sec tion 14 o f the Sta ff Handboo k.
\Vh.lt other action can I t<lke?
Ind ivid uals also ha ve the right to re fer com plai nt s to an Ind ustrial Tribuna l, w hich mus t
be d one w ithin th ree mo nt hs o f the incident.
One of my sta ff has made <I cmn plai n t of harassmcut/dlscrirni nation ag<li Ilsi J COl1C<lgUl'.
What should I du?
Most di fficult ies are m inor on es wh ich can usually be reso lved Info rmally in the line. It
is a line manager 's d u ty to d o this as soo n and as d iscree tly as possible, w ith in -l wee ks.
Treat all co mp lain ts serious ly and ca refully and alwa ys conduct a proper investigation .
You should kee p a no te of the insta nces and circu mstances in case of an y repetition.
G uidance on d ealing with sexual ha rassmen t is p rov ided in EDB 97/ 95 dat ed 29 June
1995. O the r guid ance is provided in the Staff Han d boo k Chapter I sections 13 and 14.
The Equa l Opportun ities Uni t can also be con tacted for ad vice.
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Listen carefully an d adop t a non-defens ive manner in rt.'Sponse to wh at the individual
has to say. There may have been a breakdown in comm unication between yo u which
h.1S lead to a misunderstanding, w hich might be ea sily resolved through discussion.
'unucl
149A
Exami ne your acti ons in relation to Departmental guidance covering the point at issue.
for example annual report assessment, as well as the equal opportunities policy. You
will need to ensure that. for example, your assessment o f an individual's performance
was objecti ve and based on a fair evaluation of evidence and information, and be prepared
10 defend it. If your actions cannot be justified objectively then you will need to review
lhe position. If, for whatever reason, the allegation is no l withdrawn, yo u sho u ld discuss
it with your manager and seek advice from the Equal Opportunities Un it.
.
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The Uni t has p repared an action pl an for staff w ith disabilities which consolidates existing
activities with the provisions in the 1995 Disability Discrimination Act . Its a im is to
(!nlighten a tti tudes and w orking p ractices amn ngst ",11 s t a ff ilncl to focus on the abilities.
no t the disabilities , of individ uals.
A number of du ties fall to the Uni t and to line ma nage rs and colleagues of disabled staff.
These are set out in the p lan to ensure that the needs and talen ts of those w ith d isa bilities
are not overlooked.
Wha t is the ro le o f the Unit?
The Unit aims 10 as sist line managers an d di sa bled mem ber s of sta ff in achieving effective
wo rking arr angem(!nts. This ca n include set ting up assessments w ith the Employment
Serv ice's Placement and Assessment Co u nse lling Teams (PACT) . The ir recomme nda tions
will be subm itted to the Unit w ho will then cons id er the need to p urchase specialist
equipment.
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th e Uni t w ho dea ls with disability matters?
Yes . The Head of the Un it is the offirjal Disab led Persons Officer (DPO). The d eputy
DI'O carries out most d ay to day wo rk in helpi ng disabled sta ff and line managers sort
out any p ractical problems.
\\hat do I do if I feel I need sped,]l equip nell!?
Firstly, you should disc uss it wi th your line managers. and if necessary con tact the Deputy
OPO to in form them o f you r situation. The de pu ty oro will then arrange for either a
w orkplace assessm ent to be carried out by O ffice Se rvices Division (050) or a PAG
a ssessment to be ca rried ou t by a specia list in th e field of your p articu la r d isabi lity. Based
on the recommend ati ons made the d eputy OPO w ill p u rch ase the necessary equipment.
Who will pH Illr this
,>p~ci.llisl equipment?
Pro vided that the equipment is specific to the d isability, the Uni t will pay for it from its
spec ial bud get.
I'
Firstly, you need to es tablis h w ith the d isab led member of sta ff what they th in k the ir
need s and requ irement s might be. You the n need to approach th e Uni t to determine
wha t nc-eds to be done. It may be tha t the wo rking env ironmen t needs to be reo rganised
-for exam p le, to allow access for a Wheelch air; movi ng fu rniture aw ay from obstacles;
pro vid ing a di fferen t telephone handset. There may also be so me scope for reo rganisin g
the w orki ng arrangements, provi ded that the wo rk is still ap pro priate to the gra de and
othe r staff are no t overbu rdened .
I am deaf ....... hat help can I get?
Sign language in terpreters can be hi red lhrough the Royal National Institute for the Deaf
to assist d isa bled members of staff w hen attending interviews. To hire an in terpreter
simply inform your line manager of you r concerns who will then contact this Unit to
make the necessary arrangements. The costs of the hire are bome by the Uni t. Specialist
equipment fo r the hard of hearing such as flashing lights for telephones and telephones
with adjustable volumes together with any equipment recommended by PAC[ can also
be purchased by the Unit.
What if I become disabled?
A lot will depend on you r d octor's advice, the De pa rtment's Medical Advi ser's opinion,
and your own assessment of the situation. If you are deemed fit for work, but haw
speci al needs, these should be d tscussed wi th you r line manager and then the deputy
01'0. You can also discuss this wi th a staff counsellor. All reasonable steps will be tak en
to provide p ractical support to enable yo u to ca rry ou t yo u r wo rk to an acceptable
standard . How ever, the situ ation may need to be kept under review depending on the
nature of your disability and its effects.
I am disab led and have an appotntrncn t fo r a n Intervi ew- whet do I n eed 10
consider?
If yo u fL~1 tho'll in order 10 gin' a n effec tive interv iew you n....d 10 giv(' de tails o f your
disability you sho uld ap p roach the in terv iewe r conce rned and in for m them of any
additiona l requirements nee..-ded for the lnturvlcw to be cond ucted fairly, such as requiring
a sign language in te rp re ter beca u se of a Hearing im pairmen t.
If you are d eaf or partially deaf>-
a.
Requ es t th at the re is no background noise (i.e ask for the w indows to
closed du ring th e in terview);
b.
ask the int erv fewe r not to be seated with sun light behind them, whic h
cou ld make it d ifficult for )'o u to lip read;
C.
Requ est that the y speak clearly and slowl y, .1I10w ing yo u time to
understand what is bei ng asked:
d.
as k the interviewe r to repeat the questio n if nt'Ct'S.·••lry.
If you a re a wheelchair use r, inform the interv iewer so th at they m a y speak to
accom modation ma nagers abou t p arkmg arrangemen ts and any other b ui ldi ng access
problems that may need organisi ng. such as access to lifts, ram ps etc. and inside the
in terview room itself.
If you are unsu re as to what else may be arranged thL'11 speak to the depu ty DPO for
further guidance.
Further inflJUlldlilJll rddtins to J i:>..1bilili~ 1,:.111 be obtalucd b)' (ol\t.lLling tlu- Equal
Opportu nities Uni t on (GTh12766226. This number can also be used by m inicom users.
What is the Department doing to hnptemcn t its pol icy?
The Cilh 'r'lf't O ffict> in t rod ur-ed a Pm gr.l m mf> for Actin n nn Rile", in 19Q(). Following th is
the De partmen t published its own ac tion pl an in Ju ne 1991 (EDB34/91). The p lan covers
recru itment and retention, post in gs, trainin g and moni toring. This is under con tinuous
review.
Legal obhga fions a n' set ou l in Chap te r 1 sections 13 a nd 14 of the Sta ff H andbook, as
refer red to the 'Righ ts and Res ponsibilities' sec tion in th is leaflet.
Wh Ydocs till' Department ask .., 1;) ff to
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an e th n ic origiII q uesfiun nai re?
By kel'ping a com pu l('r record of the ethn ic origin of all ou r staff we ca n use th.. res ulting
statis tics to set' how, for exa m ple, people of ethnic m inority orig in are fari ng in relation
to whi te staff d uring thei r careers.
The in formation on ind ividuals' ethn ic origin is con fide n tial so that no one is pe rsonally
iden tified. Only cer tain me mb.m; of th e Equal Opportunities Un it ha ve acces s to such
d etails. All monito ring a nd analysis is based on s ta tis tical tab les, n ot on named
ind ividuals.
I
Are there .lny training courses J v.lilabl l:' for e th ni c min o rit y st a ff ?
The Depa rtment ru ns a ' Develop ing Potent ial' co urse for ADs which, subject to d em and ,
can a lso be ru n for ethnic mi nority ADs on ly. This in itia tive is designed to p rovide a
co ns tru ctive tra inin g environm en t. The a im is to targe t the partic ula r d evelop ment needs
of co urse members mo re spec ifically than on a general co urse and, where necessa ry, to
help boost con fidence. Further details are avail ab le in Environ ment Train ing Services'
g uid e to courses, d ist rib uted th roughoul th e Department .
The C ivil Se rvi ce Co llege abo runs a nu m ber o f co u rses. Th ey a re Ma nagement
Devel opment for Ethnic Minority Staff, Personal Effectiveness for Ethnic Minority Women
and Com m un ication Skills for Ethn ic Minority Staff.
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No. Posi tive discrimina tion is illegal. But th e Race Rela tions Act allows positive action
to be taken where mino rity grou ps a rt' und er-re presented. Going on a specia l course
docs no t au to ma tically lead to advancement, an d is not un law ful actio n. Details about
the circu mstances in w hich posi tive act ion is a p pr op riate is con tai ned in a sepa rate leafle t
ob ta inable from the Un it.
Auaust
1 ~96
I am think ing of applying for a job U ulcr the adv rthin~ scheme but it is a
I(ln~ time since I have attended all interview. Where can I get <ume lip ..?
ETS run a course called. 'Selling Yourself which is designed. for any member of staff
covered by the advertising scheme. It aims to eq uip participants with the skills to p resent
themselves effectiwly at interview,
Also your line m.lnager or other colleagues may have relevant experience which they
can share with yo u.
C.:In I lake time off for rel ig io us
fe~livals?
II is possible to use yo ur annual leave for this p urpose. Line ma nagers should give
sympa thetic consideration 10 requests for annual leave to enable participation in a religious
ft'Stiv al. Tak ing a nnual Ieave a l va ried ti mes o f the y e.u ca n take th.. pl'l;'Ssure o ff at peak
times and may be ad vantageous 10 rnarugers and colleag ue'S. The Unit has a copy of a
calenda r of religious festiva ls and ( an p rovide details upon request.
Doe-, the Un it have links with outside organlsctlons?
We continue 10 develop links wi th the \V'"mdsor Fellowshi p and the Na tional Mentori ng
Conso rtium. The Windsor Fellow ship is a schem e which helps p repare ethnic minori ty
undergraduates for their ca reers by arranging work placemen ts and pro vid ing othe r
lrai nin~ and developmen t. The Department sponsors two or three Fello ws a year.
Some man.lge rs in the Depa rtmen t participate in th.. mentc rmg p rogramme run by the
Nationa l Mento rtng Consortiu m, whicj1' is fin.lllcially su p ported by a n umbe r of
employers, indudi ng OOE via the Unit. The aim is for men tors 10 p rovlde career ad vice,
g uidance and support and act as role models for eth nic minori ty studen ts.
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tilt' role of the Equal OppOrlllllitic" Unit?
The Equal O pportunities Unit a ims to brea k d ow n barriers w hic h could res ult in unfair
di scrimination. The EO U is com mitted to low ering any barriers to career progression to
ensure that a ll staff can reach their fu ll potential w ithin the De pa rtment.
How doe.'> the EOLJ identify barriers in rel.rtion to gender?
Monit oring women's achievements at all levels compared with men is a key featu re of
the Department' s equal opportunities st rategy. It is a useful indicator of possible ba rr iers
to progress and how they might be lowered.
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Women make up 42% of the Department's sta ff. The largest propo rtion rema in
concen tra ted in the clerical grades but this concen tration is now falling.
It is applied to a ll stages of recrui tment, the int erna l advertising scheme, promotion
boards, annual report pe rformance and promotability markings, performance pay and
bonuses. From th is evidence, d etails of w hich are sen t to the I US, the EOU can identify
any anomalies or trends and sec whether action is required in specific areas.
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DOE published its ow n action p lan to ach ieve equality of opportu n ity for women in
Sep tembe r 1993(EDB 61/93). (This underpinned the Cabine t Office's Programme of action
ac ross the Ci vil se rv ice in 1984 and its relaunch in 1992).
Th e OOE ac tion plan covers train ing. development , promotio n, recrui tm en t an d the
working en vironment. The principles underlying th is are th at every woman should be
judged solely on her ab ility to do her job and on nothing else.
Many o f the mea sures ta ken hav e resulted in a faire r working environment for all staff
irrespective of gender.
There is a course called 'Developing Wome n Mana ge rs' for EOs and H EOs w hich is run
by Envi ron me nt Tra ining Services (ETS) as a three da y mod u le, w ith a two day followup ap pro xima tely three months later. The course is spec ifically d esign ed to focus on the
deve lopm en t needs of wo men in OOE. It is designed .1San addition 10, and not a substitute
for, other managem ent traini ng. If yo u are interested the ETS Guide to Co urses cont ain s
fu rther informa tion.
1
011 .,ti l rIC p In.,ibiliti,'" make it I
icult f r 1 0
attend re identl.lllr.l.in ing (ourses. b th e re d" " alte ndh
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All ETS residential cou rse; have a nonresidential and /or d istance learning op tion . If
you find it difficult to attend one of the ETS courses because you wo rk part time you
should con tact the cou rse director to d iscuss options. You will find a list of contacts in
the ETS Guide to Courses.
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\\ h .. t is Opportunity l 000?
Opportunity 2000 is a national campaign suppo rted by organisations in both the private
and public sectors and is committed to increase and improve w om en's position in the
workforce. It was launched in 1991and DOE is an active member. One af ourOpportwtity
2000 gl)d.b b to maintain the e ffectivene'N> o f our prugr411lllu: of action for women and
identify areas where improvements can most usefully be made.
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I have certai n d om estic responsibllttles. Are th ere ,m y W.:lys the De pa rt me nt
can help me com b ine this role with m y working res ponsi bttittes"
The Departmen t has a num ber of " family friend ly" policies which may help staff to
ba lance the ir w orking lives with their ca ring and domestic respo ns ibilities . For examp le,
flexible working, part time wo rking. job sharing. home working, ca reer breaks and special
leav e. Some in formation is given below and full deta ils are set out in Cha pters 13 and 15
o f the Sta ff H a n d book.
J'm not sure what ty p e of ch ildc.lrl' w ou ld best su it my circum st a nces,
help?
Colli
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As a use fu l reference guide for sta tt, a ll Equal Opportunity Liaiso n O fficers hold a cop y
of the 'Working Parents Handbook - A Practical Gu ide to the Alte rnatives in Chi ldca re'
published by the Pa rents At Work organisa tion . The guid e sets out the va rious childcare
options available to parents, their likely costs and the advantages and disadva ntages of
each one.
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l-amcwith mv childr re costs?
The Dep artment cannot pay for the norm al every day chi ld care cos ts tha t sta ff incur as
work ing p arents. However, in order to help staff the Department subsidises wor kplace
nurse ry a nd holiday playschem e places in Wes tminster and some regions.
In Lon don, the Department has 10 workplace nursery places a t two inter-d epa rtmental
nurseries in Westminste r - five at "Firs t Steps" in Ma esham Street and five at "S tep ping
Stones" at H id e Place, Vincent Sq uare. Both n urse ries are run by th e Westminster
Children's Society and ca ter for children from six mon ths to school age.
The Departm ent subsidises both nurseries at 50"10. The current cost to parents is l71 pe r
week pe r p lace at First Steps and l76 pe r wee k pe r pl ace a t Step ping Stones , payable for
52 weeks of the year.
IIN urse ry application form s and booklets abo u t bot h nu rseries are ava ilable fro m the Equal
Opportunities Un it. Places are allocated on a " first come, first se rved " basis within th e
overall age req uiremen ts of the nursery. There is a waiting list whi ch is continually
reviewed.
All perma nen t stilff of OO E (male and femal e) are elig ible to app ly. Part time p laces ma y
be available b ut it is necessary for staf f to dovetail wi th ano ther par t timer.
\.\ lu i .:ab<lut the r Ki n
?
The Department also has three places in an in terdepartm en tal nu rse ry in Bristol. The
Go vernmen t Offict'Soutside London havedelegated respons ibility for ch ild care. Contact
Regional Personnel Units for details.
Wha t pro\ iviun is there for school-ag e child ren!
In Londun the \V~lmiJbler Holida y Pl<l}' ~,•cheme rWb <It all school hulidd)'''' and caters
for child ren from 5 to 12. 11 is an inter-departmental sche me coordina ted by the Cabinet
Office.
\"\hat doe", the w estminster Holiday ptavscbcme ... ust?
The Dep artment subsidises places to the extent of 50%, so the cost to parents is currently
£8 pe r place per da y. Application fonn s and further infonnation are ava ilable from the
Equal Opportunities Unit.
Wh.ll is avallabfe in the regio ns ?'
Other inter-departmental holiday ple yschcmes operate in Birm ingham , Bedford and
Bristo l. In other regio ns sta ff have participated in schemes run by other depa rtmen ts
and a ge ncies. Govern ment Office sta ff shou ld contac t the ir loca l personnel u nit for
"
Information.
Why docs the O ...- partment help o.;taff r ith ch if dcare?
Chitdce re p rovision and ass istance contin ues to fonn an integral pa rt o f the Department's
commitmen t to equality of opportun ity. Coupled wi th other " fam ily friendl y" policies
me n tio ned above, it enables the Department 10 maximise the talents of all staffirrespective
of their domestic respo nsibilities.
I
.I m
go i ng un
01
co u rse. wltl thc Department meet m y e Xlr.l chi ldca re cos h?
Staff with do mestic respo nsibili ties are able to cla im add itional chlldcare cos ts incurred
when the normal working routine is broken eg un de rtaking tra ining cou rses or working
additional hou rs. Detatls of the circumstances in wh ich reimbursement, wh ich is funded
by the line, can be claimed an d the maximum limits payable are set out in EOB '19/ 94.
Fu rther ad vice and cla im forms are av a ilab le from the Equa l Opportunities Unit.
If my cbildcare .ural gemen .. brt:,lk down, .....tll
U
he p?
It is sometimes possible for sta ff with pre-school chi ldre n 10 use short- term vacancies in
the Wt..'Stm inster N urseries. The Eq ual Opportuniti...' S Unit may be ab le to provide
information about other childcare schemes as \\"t.1I as addresses of useful organisations.
A scheme can (lnly be supported after the demand has been J.5."""'SSed and the Department
is satisfied that it represents value for m(\ney as set out in a detailed bu sin...' SS case. This
i.. how Ih.. 10 r1.1C"'"" Wl"'" .1r r m vt><i in C.."lr.lll .mdon .
I
CJn I lrply tor sp ·d,ll 1 ',n
scboul holida s:
10 ca c tor my elmo I "H~t" ch ild ren during some of the
Staff can ap ply for special leav e (u npaid) for care of children d u ring school holida ys.
Sta ff are expec ted to use ann ual leave in part. Det ails are se t out in Cha pter 15 of the
Sta ff Ha nd book.
Wh itt lin 1 do if my chi ldc.irc a rrangements s-ud de nly break down because my
,hilJ
O(
ch Lldrnincle r i, sick?
Contact yo ur line ma nager immediately to d iscuss the circum stanc es and ag ree the best
cou rse o f action. Th is may be a combi nati on of speci al leav e. annua l leave, ho me working
or a temporary revision of yo ur working pattern, subject 10 the needs of the office and
ind iv id u a l circumstances
You will need to take account of the fact tha t such emergencies may ha ppen in m aki ng
your norma l ch ildc are arran gements.
.
Staff wi th t.'mt.'rgt.'ncy childc are needs ma y be helped by the occasional availability of
sh ort-term vacancies at the nurse ries . Further details are available from th e EOU.
I am the main career for an e lderly relative and I am going
Department p ,l y the ext ra cMing co .. t-, I incur:'
O il 1
course. W ill th e
The Equal Opportun ities Unit has introduced the extension of reimbursement of additiona l
chl ldcare costs sche me to meet other carf.rtg expenses w hen there is a tem porary disru ption
to the nonnal wo rking rou tine. Conta~t the EGU for further details.
Can I appf y for "p..eial Ie.rvc because I have r.tring r..... pons tbllitics ?
Line Ma nage rs have d isc reti on to g ra nt special leave (paid and un paid) in ce rtain
circums tances. These include domestic d istress eg illness of a near rela tive, care of children
in school holidays, nursing sick relatives and paternity leave. Details are set out in Chapter
15 of the Sta ff Handbook. Requ ests for special leave w ill be consid ered.sy mpathetica lly,
especially where they sustain eq ual opportuni ties policies . Applica tions should be m ade
on form FED 0904.
The De pa rtment operates a career break scheme allowing abse nces for up to five years.
At the end of the ca reer break a retu rn to wo rk cannot be gua ranteed. However, a series
of steps wo uld be ta ken to help you identify a post. But, if, at the end of six mo nths from
the expiry of your career break, you have no t accep ted a pos t, your con tract of employment
will term ina te by mutua l agreement un der the terms of the agreed contract variation.
Full details of the scheme are set ou l in EDB 6/96.
II
1\
when you are on a career break the Department will send you a quarterly newsletter,
ed ited by one of the "Keeping In Touch Scheme" (KITS) members. A central training
budget en ables KITS members to ob tain work-related trai ning prior to their return to
work.
A"""", 199&
I .nn finding it difficult balanring my work and home commitments. Is there
other help availahle?
;lily
The Staff Counselling and Support Service (forma lly the Welfare Service) is available to
assist staff. A leaflet " Do You Care?" gives details of other organisations who may be
able to help staffwho are careers for elderly or infinn de pendents. Con tact the Counselling
and Support Service at Great Minister House, Horseferry Road, London SW1 on GTN
271 5493 for deta ils of local staff counse llors.
.,
I
&Uflll<:t
199/i
Part-time w orking and job sh a ring
C.1I1 I \vU f'" p.Il L-lime ?
An y membe r of staff regard less of grad e or gen der ma y ap ply fo r part-time w ork ing.
Part-time working is p articularly use ful as a means of en ab ling staff to combine work
w ith domes tic respo nsib ilities .
Wh.lt ifa member o f my s taff w.mts to work part-time?
The Departmen t ta kes the view that most jobs, if not all, ca n be d one on a part-time basis
pro vid ed managers thin k creati vely abou t the tas ks to be d one by th eir team , the va rious
op tions for achievi ng them and the resou rces a vnilnblo w ithin theo Division o r Branch as
a whole. Jobs can be split in to tasks and res ponsibilities and shared by two or more
individ ua ls. Part-time working whi ch offers a reasonable wa y of meeting the needs of
th e job can p rov id e a solut ion to sta ffing problems.
WhJt hour" can I wo rk?
Pa tterns o f pa rt-time working vary w idlJly. Some part-time staff wor k only a few hours
a week , so me wor k alm os t full-time. You will need to agrl'(' wit h line ma nagement the
ho urs that bes t su it yo ur situati on and the need s o f th e job.
How do I .lpply?
If yo u wa nt to wo rk part-time you should d iscuss proposals with yo ur line manag er in
the first ins tanc e. It is he lp ful if you ca n suggest how yo u thi nk th ing s wou ld work in
practi ce. Part -time staff in grades cov ered by the ad ve rtis ing sche me are elig ible to appl y
for advertised vacancies.
How are my condi tion, o f service affected?
Con di tions of se rvia' for pa rt time sta ffare described in a se pa rate leaflet w hich is available
from the Eq ua l Opportu n ities Unit.
Flexible vorking
llll
Hours
,n
Staff can opt to work flexible wo rking hours under the arrangements set out in EDB 33/
93 d olled 29 April 1993. These ena ble staff, wi th line managers agree men t, to vary their
sta rting, IC<lving an d lunc h times an d 10 take up to 3 dcys cred it leav e in ",very oj, wee k
accounting period.
Wh.ll m' the limit'> tu thi-, le xibility?
In London this flexibility is subject to staff attending the office, on working days, between
10.00 ·12.00 and U .30 -16.00. taking a mandatory minimum half hour for lunch and not
exceeding a debit of 11.1 hours (l0.8 in London) in an y -I week accounting period. This
leaves staff with wide flexibility to arrange their working hours to meet domestic needs
or arrange for leisure time subject to the management needs of the office.
\
Do the same rules applv outside london?
These arrangements may vary in outstations and Covemrnent Offices subject to local
management and TUS agreement. so staff in those locations are advised to check their
operation.
.
l
(PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT DIVISION 3 (PIDB))
2 ~brsham Street, london, SW1 P 3EB
KEN O\R;\;OLD
Room C8 / 02 Tel 276 6025
Head of Di vnsion (Grade 5)
with a wide range of other
Personnel policy
responsibilities
CB/Ot Tel 276 6191
Personal Secretary
..
Room C8/l?, A Tel 276 6548
Grad e 7: Hea d ')j Equa l Opportunities
Unit with respcfhsibilities for
healthca re policy, FWH an d othe r
related issues Departmenta l Disabled
Perso ns' O fficer (D OPO)
1
Room C8/1SA
Room C8 / 1SA Tel 276 6223
Tel 276 6165
HEO: Policies for
ethnic minorities ;
HEO: Monitori ng;
Finance; CC LO
Rm C'S/ ISA Tel 27b s ioe
EO Ethnic and gende r
monitoring; Production
o f statistics on all
aspects of Equa l
Opportu ni ties
Healthca re: FWH
Room C8/15A Tel 176 622b
EO: (Deputy OOPO) Policy
& Casework for sta ff with
disabilities; Healthcare
Flexible working Hours;
Use o f YDU~
.luaust
1m
Rm C8 / 1SA Tel 2766805
H EO: Policies for w omen
C h iid ca l'\l; K_ p ing in Touch
Scheme; Part -time working
C8 /1 SA 'lei 176 6770
EO: Supports on KITS
Part-time work ing &
ch tldcare: Health
screening
,
ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION
1.-,1_ _
EEMD
D.wid Pearson. e11 / H.
Marsha m St Tel 1276-H35
EID
Sarah Woo llef. Rm 83+8,
Rom ney Hse Tel 2768140
EPSWD
Karin Ca vi ll, Pl/02-l.
Marsha m SI Tl'1 276 5816
IVLD
Cla ire Alexander.Rm A463,
Romney Hse Tel 276 81%
---I
J
PERSONNEL CENTRAL SERVICES ANO
MANAGEMENT SUPPORT SERVICES
if
I I
And reaTaylor, C lO/ 17,
Ma rsbam St Tel 276 4686
PCSS
Nalin Parekh. Rm AFt7,
.
Highwood Pavilions Tel 1384 554
j
FINANCE CENTRAL
Fe
Alan Pryke, :-';'::I/o.l.
Marsha m SI Tel 276 J8.lO
LEGALANOCORPORATE SERVICES
LEGALA;'ro
CORPORATE SERVICES
Simo n Brindley. P3/1 20.
Marsham St Tel 276 3520
l lllll!'d
199&
I
LOCAL DEVELOPMENT
I'
~,
I •,
-
-
"
.•.. EOlO~: . :
.
-- -
-
-
-
----------,
LG
Sarah Cha mel l, Pl /1 39A.
Marsham SI Tel 276 6315
LGA'
Ann Blackm ore. 1\:6/ 06.
~ la rsham SI Tel 2764769
RO
Janet 'Iublin, P2/121A.
xt arsham St 1e1276 3331
Amogene Parris. 1'2/11 5.
Marsham 51 Tel 276 47J.l
HOUSING, CONSTRUCTION, PLANNING
AND COUNTRYSIDE
..
,
DIRECTORATE
-
co
,
c'
<
..
•
EOLO
-----
Andy Armstrong, e 1/ 13.
. ~Ma rsh am St T('1276 0425
HSPR
Linda O liver, N 13/ 17 A,
Ma rsham 51 Td 276399 1
HPPS /H U~I A
Stephen Ch urlcy. Nl2IlS.
Ma rsh am 51 Tel 276 3442
,
,
- .
Jan White. N7 / 06A,
,
M arsham 51 It'l 276 3258
P50
LorraineHumphrey, Pt !1 76A
Marsham St
.
WACO
T('1 2760487
Hilary Neal. Rm 920
Tollg ate Hse rei 137'" 8567
Richa ed Chap mAn, Rm
Q22
Tollgate Hse 1eI 13748570
po
Janct Alben, C 14/19,
Marsha m 5
Tel 2763516
COMMUNICATION
CO ~I ~ IUN ICAno:-:
Barry Hart, NI 8j OQ
Marsham 51 Tel 276 ~
.
INTEGRATED REGIONAL OFFICES
.
GOVT OFFIC ~'."'. ..'-":"_';'"
;<>m EOlO r._·"'~··' · .
_ ;1;_:
•
GO-~'E
Diana Pearce, Rm 1220
Wellba r H se, N ewcastle- upon-Tyee
Tel 5227 3620
GO-YH
Alison Biddulph. 10 Floor East
City House, leeds
Tel 5173 5305
GO-NW
Celia Comri e, Rm 1208
Sunley Towe r, ~t anchester
Tel 4301 4230
----
Dave Olson, Rm 313
Gracme House. Liverpool
GO-M
Tel 41 27 6375
GO-WM
.,
--
,
Liz Eas tw ood. 5th Floor
71 Paradise Circus, Binningham
Tp]
1>1 77 51RR
CO-EM
,t: ue Slo ne, Level E, The Belgrave
Cen tre. Stanl ey Place, Talbot
Street, Nottingham
Tel 6205 2686
CD- ER
John Mcintosh
Rm 101, Heron House, Bedford
Tel 3013 6109
C ristine Lew is
Room 2610, Millbank Tower
GD- L
Tel 217 4690
CD-SE
CD-SW
-I
I
-
-
Lorra ine C hic ken
4th Floor, The Pithay. Bristol
Te11361 1722
AuQUst 1996