Lead member for Equalities and Domestic Abuse.
Main linked Directorate(s)
Reports to the Portfolio Holders for:
- Police, Crime and Civil Contingencies
- Housing and Welfare
Main roles and responsibilities of the Lead Member
- To support the delivery of the Deal 2030 priorities and pledges in the Wigan Council Recovery Plan
- To drive forward the Community Wealth Building approach and create an inclusive borough which is better and fairer for local people
- To support the delivery of our Climate Change Strategy by looking at the climate challenge as an opportunity to reduce inequalities
- To chair the Equality, Inclusion and Diversity Steering Group
- To develop the borough’s Equality Strategy via the Equality Inclusion and Diversity Steering Group
- To champion the Council’s Equality Commitment to ensure a fair and inclusive borough
- To challenge the Council to exceed our statutory obligations under the Public Sector Equality Duty
- To work with our communities to ensure Wigan is a borough that welcomes, celebrates, and embraces diversity and inclusion
- To build safer communities with police and other partners
- To ensure the Council and partners meet their statutory responsibilities with regard to the Domestic Abuse Bill
- To ensure that the Council has a robust Domestic Abuse Strategy and delivery plan
- To advocate for Domestic abuse lived experience and engagement in the improvement of services, such as IDVAs, DA Community Service etc
- To support the reduction of the overall incidence and impact of domestic abuse and sexual violence in the borough
- To support the development of our Domestic Abuse Strategy and oversight of commissioning decisions via our local Domestic Abuse Partnership Board
- To promote community cohesion and highlighting the negative impact of hate crimes by ensuring that there is a risk and harm-based response to dealing with all hate crime.
Priorities for 2022/2023
- Implementation of the key priorities set out in our Deal 2030 - Our Place, Our People, Our Future
- To deliver against our Equality Commitments for 2022/23
- Publishing our annual PSED
- Strengthen the link between the Be Wigan behaviours and equality and diversity.
- Oversee the co-development of a Wigan Borough Equality Strategy
- Develop the quality of the data and intelligence we gather across the Council and partners, to understand better inequalities and the levels and impact of Domestic Abuse in the borough
- Improve inclusive engagement and awareness of equality and diversity in the borough
- Oversee the adoption of the new Domestic Abuse legislation and ensure the Council delivers the statutory requirements under the duty
- Oversee the development of a new Domestic Abuse Strategy for the borough, involving victims in decision-making, and give effect to related commissioning decisions around support and safe accommodation
- Oversee the co-ordination of Wigan’s response to GM’s Preventing Hateful Extremism and Promoting Social Cohesion Commission
- Support the development of strategic and tactical initiatives to reduce the impact of domestic abuse and sexual violence in the Borough by identifying and intervening early with victims, families and perpetrators
- Improve engagement and awareness on domestic abuse and sexual violence, with a full training and awareness raising programme and robust media campaign
- Ensure a strategic approach to supporting those who access drug and alcohol services to be more resilient.
Functions covered by the Lead Member
- Equality and Diversity
- Domestic Abuse
- Drug and Alcohol team
- Domestic Abuse Partnership Board
- Place and Community Safety Partnership Board.
Outside bodies on which the Lead Member represents the Council
- Police and Crime Panel - Substitute Member
- Greater Manchester Inequalities Board.
Council Appointments
- Astley Green Colliery Liaison Panel
- Asylum Seekers Providers Forum
- Greater Manchester Inequalities Board
- Greater Manchester Homelessness Programme Board
- Police, Crime & Fire Panel
- Police, Crime & Fire Steering Group
- Planning and Housing Commission.