By Joe Locker, Local Democracy Reporter
Gedling Borough Council is commissioning an independent review of the lack of ethnic minority representation among its elected members and officer workforce.
Concerns were voiced by resident Auvil Graham to the leader of the Labour-run council, Cllr John Clarke, and deputy leader Cllr Michael Payne.
Mr Graham spoke at a Full Council meeting on the evening of Wednesday, April 17, to say he was “disappointed” with the council’s written response to an email he’d sent to the two councillors.
He said: “In my original email I noted of nearly 50 councillors, officers, and members of the public in attendance at the Full Council meeting of January 2024, apart from myself there was only one other person from a visible ethnic minority.
“Given the deputy leader’s response to a constituent’s question at that meeting in which he said the council takes its responsibility for equality and diversity seriously and that all protected characteristics are equally important, I question the validity of that statement.”
Mr Graham said according to the latest equality monitoring data from 2021 only 4.4 per cent of the council’s employees were from visible minorities, against a population of about 10 per cent.
“I had asked that given the councils stated commitment to equality I would be very grateful to know how GBC intends to make the council more representative ethnically of the public it serves, and efforts to engage the council’s minority ethnic population in all activities including local democracy,” he added.
“The reply from the leader and deputy leader does not, unfortunately, answer my question. Indeed, it does not specifically address under-representation of minority ethnic people at all. I would be grateful for a clear answer.
“How does GBC intend to make the council more representative ethnically of the public it serves and engage the council’s minority ethnic population in all activities, including local democracy?”
Deputy leader Cllr Payne said he shared Mr Graham’s concerns on the need for greater progress on improving the representation of ethnic minorities within the council’s workforce and among elected representatives.
He said while work is being done, including advertising jobs to 40 different individuals and community groups working with potentially unrepresented applicants, and training managers in unconscious bias and equality, more work is yet needed.
“The truth is too many individuals from black and minority groups still face discrimination and disadvantage both in getting into and progressing at work,” he said.
“People of all ethnicities and backgrounds should have equality of access, treatment and outcomes throughout their employee life cycle, from getting a job to accessing training and receiving a promotion.
“The council has made progress in tackling some of these challenges. But let me be crystal clear on the public record there is always more to do.
“I have therefore, Mr Graham, asked the council’s strategic, equalities and diversity group and our senior management team, led by our chief executive, to commission an independent review of the council’s recruitment and retention procedures, policies and culture, with a specific focus on the issue of the council’s staff being representative of the community it serves, including representation of ethnic minorities in our workforce.”
Cllr Payne said it would draw on findings from other reviews, including the 2017 review by Baroness McGregor-Smith, which considered the issues affecting black and minority ethnic (BME) groups in the workplace.
“From a personal perspective I will continue to do everything I can within my power to support people from ethnic minorities who wish to stand for public office, both at a local and national level as I have done for the last 10 years,” Cllr Payne added.
