Equal Opportunities Strategy

The Federation is committed to providing equality of opportunity in all our services. This commitment is outlined in our Equal Opportunities Policy. If you would like more information on this please contact the Federation.

Equal Opportunities Policy

Newcastle Tenants Federation recognises that certain groups and individuals are discriminated against in society. The Federation is opposed to such discrimination and is committed to equality of opportunity in the employment of its staff, the services it provides, and the composition of its committees and working groups.

The Federation aims to ensure that, in these areas of its responsibility, no one is discriminated against on grounds of age, gender, race, colour, national or ethnic origin, disability, religious belief, marital status, family circumstances or caring responsibilities, sexual orientation or trade union activities.

In employment, selection criteria and procedures will be reviewed and monitored to ensure that no individual is disadvantaged by conditions or requirements that cannot be shown to be justifiable, and that individuals are selected on the basis of their relevant merits and abilities.

The Federation is committed to a programme of training and action to make this policy fully effective. To date this work has included:

• Encouraging all tenants and residents groups to adopt a constitution with an equal opportunities statement of their own

• Ensuring that equal opportunities is a key element of any training we deliver

• Organising training for tenant group representatives around diversity and equality issues

• Offering specific support to tenants and residents groups on demand to enable them to implement equality of opportunity at their meetings and in their work. The training and support we have delivered to groups around asylum seekers and refugees is an example of this work

• Providing information leaflets about our service in the city’s most commonly used community languages, on audio tape and offering a translation facility for other key information material we produce

• Holding focus groups with BME tenants to discuss the work of the Federation and identify housing issues of concern to those tenants

• Ensuring that all services we provide are accessible for all.

Asylum Seekers

We believe that tenants and residents groups can play a key role in supporting refugees and asylum seekers moving into their community by ensuring that their community understands why refugees and asylum seekers are being housed in their area.

Local people are more likely to be open minded and welcome refugees and asylum seekers if they are aware of the problems they face and the reason they have fled their home countries.

The Federation offers support to groups on the issue and has produced a briefing sheet which looks at what groups can do to support refugees and asylum seekers moving into their community.