Appendix 2 Equality Analysis Form, Council plan and Year Ahead Delivery Plan Progress Update 2024/25

Identify by protected characteristics.

How does the Policy/Service meet the needs of different communities and groups?

Protected characteristics of Age, Disability, Sex, Gender Reassignment, Race, Religion or Belief, Sexual Orientation, Civil Partnerships and Marriage, Pregnancy and Maternity - see glossary on page 14 of the Equality Screening and Analysis Guidance.

Equalities is cross cutting throughout the Council Plan and Year Ahead Delivery Plan. Of the five guiding principles, two in particular aim to meet residents’ and communities’ differentiated needs:

• Expanding opportunities for all
• Working with our communities

Expanding opportunities encompasses the Council’s priority to tackle inequality, striving to ensure that the health and life chances of the most disadvantaged communities are improving the fastest. To complement this approach, ‘working with our communities’ ensures that to achieve the best outcomes for local people, local residents are involved in the things that matter to them and services are designed based on input from those who use them. This will enable service users to take an active role in improving access to services, highlighting any barriers for those sharing protected characteristics in designs and services, making sure that specific needs are met. 

There is also an outcome focussed on addressing inequalities and leaving no one behind within the ‘people are safe, healthy and live well’ theme.  This will involve providing support to our communities at a level that is proportionate to the degree of need – taking a universal approach where appropriate whilst also providing targeted support to those who most need it. 

Furthermore, the underlying ‘One Council’ theme encompasses two specific areas, which ensure different needs are met:

• All customers at the heart of everything we do
• Engaged, diverse and skilled workforce who feel empowered to adopt new ways of working to meet the needs of all customers. 

The Council’s commitment to place all customers at the heart of service delivery includes a strengthened approach to equalities and inclusivity.  This will involve working with services and partners to promote equality, celebrate diversity and ensure fairness for everyone.  The commitment to an engaged, diverse and skilled workforce is expected to improve the council’s response to diverse customer needs, by bringing a more differentiated understanding of equality and diversity considerations and barriers.

he six-monthly progress reports capture progress in relation to all activities within the Year Ahead Delivery Plan and a suite of key performance measures.  

Within the five themes of the Council Plan, a series of universal offers are aimed at all of Rotherham’s residents, while several actions are specifically aimed at tackling inequalities and issues of access. The following expands both on the universal and the targeted offers within each theme.

Every neighbourhood thriving 

Activities in this area are aimed at meeting the needs of all residents and ensure they benefit from thriving neighbourhoods. The priorities of making neighbourhoods welcoming and safe, local people having access to libraries, cultural activities, parks and green spaces, improved local town and village centres, reducing crime and anti-social behaviour and improving street safety are for the benefit of all residents regardless of protected characteristics. Residents, organisations and businesses are encouraged and enabled to use their skills and resources to help others. 

Individual services, such as parks, libraries, cultural offers and neighbourhood working will each undertake an equality analysis, where required to do so, to identify gaps, making sure that any physical, cultural, language or other access barriers are identified, and all residents have offers meeting their needs. 

Progress made which links to improving equality, diversity and inclusion outcomes include: 

• 25 Ward Plans produced and published - Borough-wide and local VCS organisations and groups representing communities with protected characteristics were invited to inform the setting of the ward priorities. Census data and other equalities data was also used to inform the priorities. Details as to how we will continue to engage with communities with protected characteristics are included in the ward plans. 
• New pedestrian crossings have been designed and implemented at Cortonwood and Swallownest which has improved accessibility for pedestrians in both areas.
• A number of cultural events have been held in various locations across the Borough. All events consider equalities including translation services and BSL for entertainment activities. Other examples include ensuring that artists and performers appropriately reflect the demographics for each event and provision at all events for disabled visitors.
• Rotherham Show in September 2024 continued to be hugely popular free event for everyone to enjoy, attracting approximately 45,000 visitors. This year, there was a sensory area to provide a calming space for neurodiverse and disabled adults and children and mobility access was improved, with a number of mobility scooters available. The show received a 95% satisfaction rating from survey respondents. A commissioned survey from QA also showed that families were the biggest audience, and visitors were made up of 77% Rotherham residents, with 21% coming from other surrounding South Yorkshire postcodes. The ethnic group split of visitors this year was 88% White British, 6% Asian or Asian British, 3% Black British and 3% Mixed heritage, which is a large shift from last year’s audience being 91% White British.
• A full review of Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPO) has been completed to ensure that plans in place are robust and drive enforcement of proposed conditions. Two new three-year orders commenced in January 2025, which will ensure the safety of local areas for residents.
• Changing Places Facilities are now in place in Clifton Park Museum, Gulliver’s Valley Resort, Wentworth Woodhouse, Grimm & Co, Rotherham United Football Ground, Rother Valley Country Park, and Thrybergh Country Park. The introduction of these amenities helps to support the needs of disabled visitors and provide accessible facilities to public places. 
• A new Community Safety Strategy for 2025-30 has been developed and approved as of February 2025 to improve the security of the Rotherham population in a coherent and accountable manner.  Borough-wide and local VCS organisations and groups representing communities with protected characteristics were invited to contribute to the priorities. Additionally, the Community Safety team attended a wide range of events and consulted with a range of VCS representatives who work with diverse client cohorts.
• Several of the remaining schemes through the Towns and Villages Fund programme have been completed ensuring that improvements are made to the local high street to improve accessibility and connectivity for residents. 
• The Our Places programme has developed and delivered schemes to improve gateways into principal towns and villages to improve resident accessibility across the borough. 

People are safe, healthy and live well

Actions in this area are aimed at protecting everyone’s physical and mental health, while focusing on the most vulnerable. 

Within the priority for people to feel empowered, safe and live independently for as long as possible, actions focus on people with learning disabilities and their careers, independent living and adult social care ensure that the needs of these vulnerable groups are prioritised. Notably, in this area, a range of engagement and co-production exercises have been undertaken, with a range of diverse communities, to ensure that their views are considered in service design and delivery and their needs are met. This is central to improving accessibility and enabling inclusive services.

More generally, ongoing monitoring and improvement of services contributing to this theme is key, as the most vulnerable often face the most barriers. Monitoring should identify and address gaps in provision, and in particular ensure that individuals sharing several protected characteristics, and thus potentially facing multiple barriers, can access the support they need. 

Progress made which links to improving equality, diversity and inclusion outcomes include: 

• An impact assessment of the mental health services redesign was completed in October 2024 to recognise ongoing opportunities to improve mental health services. The crisis specification ensures that all mental health agencies understand their responsibility to support residents of all protected characteristics. The Mental Health enablement service is also now operational and is designed to enable adults with mental ill health to maximise their independence and connect to their community to ensure longer-term resilience.    
• Launched in April 2024, the new Learning Disability Strategy ensures that people with learning disabilities have access to the right support at the right time. The strategy is available in a range of formats to ensure it is fully accessible. 
• Construction and groundwork have now commenced on Castle View Day Service, which will provide a purpose-built centre that will deliver service provision and day opportunities to meet the needs for people with high support needs. 
• 17 additional homes have been added to the Council’s temporary accommodation portfolio via the Councils Housing delivery Programme to meet demand and reduce hotel usage. These homes meet the short-term needs of a diverse range of households, and actively promotes inclusion by providing suitable temporary accommodation for individuals with protected characteristics. 
• New Council housing is needs led. The latest scheme designs include specialised wheelchair user dwellings and other accessible homes on the sites, which have been designed for old people and those with health conditions and disabilities. 
• Started the groundwork on new assisted living accommodation in Canklow alongside Castle View, a purpose-built day centre for people with high support needs. This will allow for facilities that more effectively meet people’s needs and support people to lead independent lives.
• The Council Tax Support Top Up scheme provided up to £121.96 to working households receiving council tax support and the Energy Crisis Scheme offered up to £250 to households that are struggling to meet the cost of their energy bill. Customers can access both in a variety of ways and are supported when applying. 

Every child able to fulfil their potential

Actions under this theme are aimed at children having the best start in life, children and young people being safe from harm, feeling empowered to succeed and achieve their aspirations, whilst also having fun things to do and safe places to go. 

Activities aim to address educational inequalities through collaborative working with schools and partners, so all children are ready to attend school and learn and are able to engage in future education, training, and employment. This will give all young people the opportunity to fulfil their potential, regardless of ability. 

Some actions specifically target support to those who are disadvantaged, vulnerable or have disabilities. Specific actions to open new in-house residential children’s homes will enable looked after children to access the best local placements whilst other specific actions aim to improve opportunities and outcomes for children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), so they can get the best start in life.  Activities for young people to have things to do and safe places to go have also been designed so that accessibility is ensured as much as possible.

Progress made which links to improving equality, diversity and inclusion outcomes include: 

• 90% of families have now registered to the Family Hub Programme. It offers face-to-face services in which families can go to for help and support, alongside digital offers in a number of alternative languages. VCS organisations form part of the wider Family Hubs network, to increase opportunities for families to engage with and be supported by Family Hubs. Rotherham Ethnic Minority Alliance (REMA), and Clifton Learning Partnership (CLP) are two organisations who are part of the network, working within our most diverse communities and supporting the delivery of the programme, its values, and principles.
• Enhancement of support sessions for under 5’s has been delivered through Rotherham’s Statutory Children’s Centres. The delivery of activity seeks to better engage harder to reach communities, as well as celebrating a broad range of religious festivals.
• New in-house residential children’s homes are being developed and opened, enabling looked-after children to remain in the borough where appropriate and remain safe from harm. Ofsted registration for the fourth two-bedroom home was submitted in March 2025.
• Resource Provisions have been registered or approved to provide additional school places for children with special educational needs. This has increased the amount of local education places for young people with SEND. 
• The Independent Travel Training scheme has been developed for children and young people in receipt of home to school transport due to a special educational need. This training is bespoke and seeks to promote independence skills.  As of year-end, 31 children and young people had successfully completed the training. 
• Children’s Capital of Culture (CCoC) has been co-designed and launched with children and young people from all communities to ensure that it offers opportunities for all children and young people in Rotherham. Promotion has been particularly targeted at local SEND educational settings and across SEND groups and networks. The CCoC events programme specifically celebrates, represents, and meets the need of gender diverse communities, for example WOW Rotherham. 
• Work has now started at the new Water Splash facility at Clifton Park, after consultation with families of children with SEND was completed during Summer 2024. Inclusive and interactive play has been built into the design of the facility.
• The Baby Packs have now been commissioned, set-up and rolled out across the borough to support families with essential items and child development.
• Engagement has taken place through the Enterprise Adviser Network Project with all 27 Rotherham secondary schools and colleges, in the South Yorkshire Careers Hub to assist them enhance their careers provision, improve interactions with local employers and achieve at least 6 of the Gatsby benchmarks, designed to align young people with opportunities.

Expanding economic opportunity

Aims for this theme include growing the economy to provide decent jobs and chances to progress; rejuvenating places through regeneration schemes across the borough; giving people the chance to learn, develop skills and fulfil their potential; working with partners and suppliers to create more local jobs paid at the living wage or above and more apprenticeships; and increasing digital access through infrastructure enhancements and skills development. 

Contributing to these aims are projects supporting residents to gain skills and enhance their employment prospects, a range of regeneration programmes across the borough, action around social value and local labour policies, and the development of a digital inclusion strategy.

Equality analysis and monitoring will be carried out where appropriate to ensure vulnerable residents sharing protected characteristics benefit from this support. Given the gender pay gap in Rotherham is substantial and above the national average, activities in this area will need to be monitored closely to ensure they do not widen the gap. 

Activity that links to improving equality, diversity and inclusion outcomes includes: 

• Redevelopment projects by many of the Councils partners have now been complete. These projects work to improve access to leisure and cultural assets for a range of diverse users while also improving skills within the local community. The redevelopment of Maltby grammar school to create a new business and community hub aims to support students, through a range of specialist staff and inclusive teaching, to fulfil their potential. Improvements to the visitor attractions at Magna have been completed, extending the targeted age range to include better learning provisions for under 5’s. An increase in education staffing has allowed for the delivery of additional sessions specifically aimed at SEND support and home educator groups. The redevelopment project has enabled Grimm to purchase and transform a disused church into a new home for the children’s literacy charity. The charity has installed a multitude of accessible features to ensure that the needs of disabled children and adults are met. Alongside this, Gulliver’s Skills Academy is due to be completed in the Summer. This will help to widen career aspirations for children and young people across the borough.
• Key priorities of the Council’s Social Value Policy have been delivered through a range of events and specific courses to support businesses to grow with the public sector. This increases diversity in the supply chain ensuring that every business has accessibility to public procurement opportunities. Networks and links with VCS have been used to ensure marketing reaches the businesses located in the most deprived areas.
• A range of initiatives are supporting residents to improve their skills and enhance their employment prospects, including the new Employment Hub pathway and Employment Solutions Service which help unemployed people into work or training. The Employment hub also supports those in structured recovery from addiction and those with neuro-diverse conditions to access employment or training. 711 residents have been supported via the Employment Hub during 2024/25.
• The Council is actively promoting the living wage accreditation.
• The Children’s Capital of Culture programme has been utilised to support skills development opportunities for young people. For example, it has emphasised recruitment of 16–25-year-olds to work as paid Trainee Young Producers. 
• Regeneration project designs are developed in consultation with Rotherham residents and construction of new buildings and facilities includes consideration of accessibility. For example, as a result of the Council’s growing relationship with Rotherham Sight and Sound, dedicated tours were held prior to opening of Forge Island to ensure users of the town centre with visual and hearing difficulties could become familiar with the new amenity.
• A Digital Inclusion Strategy has been delivered and includes the rollout of free sim cards to digitally excluded residents, along with devices and community-based training session which will benefit residents in terms of communication opportunities and community involvement. Pathways have been established to ensure ongoing access to support for people who may otherwise be at risk of digital exclusion.

A cleaner, greener local environment

The priorities of making neighbourhoods cleaner and greener are for the benefit of all residents regardless of protected characteristics.

This theme encompasses reductions in carbon emissions, working towards net zero targets, better transport systems for future generations, reduced risks of flooding and other environmental emergencies. There are no immediate equality implications in this area, although any direct impacts on residents, such as through actions in housing, transport and in work with community organisations, will be monitored.

Progress made which links to improving equality, diversity and inclusion outcomes include: 

• Work has commenced at Rother Valley Country Park and is scheduled to commence at Thrybergh Country Park in July 2025/26. Disabled carparking spaces will be available, sheltered outdoor seating and tables will accommodate the needs of those who are immune-suppressed and new landscaping down to the water’s edge will be accessible to those with prams, people in wheelchairs and mobility scooter-users. At Rother Valley Country Park, there will be level access to the landscaped areas surrounding the café to ensure accessibility alongside two accessible toilets on the ground floor and another within the event space. Changing Places facilities are in place at both Country Parks, supporting the needs of disabled visitors and providing accessible facilities to public places.  
• The Outline Business Case for Rotherham Mainline Station has been completed and submitted. This will provide the potential to enhance economic growth, sustainability and community well-being, while also creating vibrant public spaces that enhance quality of life for residents in the borough.
• The delivery of bus, tram, and cycle improvements, such as the Sheffield Road Cycleway, aim to connect communities and provide an alternative mode of transport. The work will help to tackle transport poverty and support healthy lifestyles for a wide range of people.  
• Delivery of the Council’s Transforming Cities Fund programme with regional partners is progressing. Work at the Magna Tram-Train stop has commenced with completion expected in Winter 2025/26. The Parkgate Link Road opened in December 2024, and the Park and Ride at Parkgate became operational in May 2025. These transport initiatives address the needs of various communities, promoting equal access and an inclusive transport service.
• Community engagement has been carried out with residents to change behaviours to mitigate climate change. The Community Energy Officer consulted with several VCS organisations to deliver relevant service information. 

For a number of projects within this theme, equality impacts will be considered at both scheme design and delivery stage.

One Council

The One Council theme is focussed around working with our communities to deliver modern services which are accessible to all residents. The theme includes priorities and outcomes that reflect how the Council is delivering effective customer services, ensuring residents can access the services that they need, along with an engaged, diverse and skilled workforce who are empowered to meet the needs of all customers. 

The following areas have progressed which have a direct impact on improving equality, diversity and inclusion outcomes:

• The Council website is examined by an external body on a monthly basis regarding accessibility, and continual feedback from customers is used to shape the layout and functionality of the website.
• Improvement to the accessibility of face-to-face services at Riverside House have been implemented, including higher seating to ensure accessibility.
• Equality, Diversity and Inclusion staff networks were engaged in the redevelopment of the Council Values, relaunched in June. This ensures that a focus on equalities is embedded throughout each value.
• The delivery of the first cohort of a learning and development programme that helps embed a strength based-working approach across the Council’s workforce and partners was completed in December 2024. At the forefront of this programme is developing an understanding of diverse communities and support in building on the strengths already within those communities.
• The early careers hub was launched in December 2024 to showcase the entry routes into the Council and attract a more diverse pool of candidates.
• Improvements continue to be made to the employee experience. Work is ongoing to streamline and improve each stage of the employee lifecycle, with significant improvements made to wellbeing, learning and development, and attraction strategies including apprenticeships and early careers. 
• Work to develop the Council Plan 2025-30 has concluded, it was considered by Cabinet in May 2025 prior to coming into effect. A public consultation ran from September to November 2024 to inform the new priorities. Throughout this, the Council ensured engagement with as many residents as possible, and that the consultation was accessible to those with protected characteristics. Three cross cutting policy drivers run throughout the new plan. One of these includes ‘opportunities are expanded to all’ to ensure that the Council creates new opportunities, with help targeted to those who need it the most. All outcomes aim to meet residents’ and communities’ differentiated needs.
• Average customer wait time to corporate contact centre was 2 minutes 47 seconds in Quarter 4, which is considerably lower than the target set by the Council. Shortening customer wait times improves access to services for all residents.
• The number of disabled employees working in the Council is now 10.6% against a target of 9% and has continued to increase over the course of the year.

There are two equality, diversity and inclusion related measures where outcomes have not yet reached the targets. These are:

• Overall proportion of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic employees – 5.6% against a year-end target of 6.3%
• Proportion of the workforce under 25 – 3.4% against a year-end target of 4.6%

The Workforce Plan sets out key activity to become an employer of choice, including a review of how the Council attracts, recruits, develops and retains staff from different sections of the community. There will also be targeted work with the Young Employees Network to recruit young people, as well as with the BME network to address recruitment barriers facing this group. This work will help to provide a rich source of knowledge on how the Council can promote being an inclusive employer, along with other insights on attracting applicants and work to strengthen partnerships with local universities and colleges to ensure active promotion of local government careers and Rotherham in particular.

Does your Policy/Service present any problems or barriers to communities or Groups?

No problems or barriers have been identified or flagged as part of the reporting process.

Does the Service/Policy provide any positive impact/s including improvements or remove barriers?

Yes, as detailed above.

What affect will the Policy/Service have on community relations? (may also need to consider activity which may be perceived as benefiting one group at the expense of another) 

No negative impacts expected – any targeted activities are based on known needs and vulnerabilities.

Please list any actions and targets that need to be taken as a consequence of this assessment on the action plan below and ensure that they are added into your service plan for monitoring purposes – see page 12 of the Equality Screening and Analysis Guidance.