the aims, objectives and purposes of the service
North Norfolk District Councils Environmental Health Service covers a wide range of enforcement and service delivery activities on a proactive and reactive basis including; food safety, infectious disease control, health & safety, waste enforcement and disposal, nuisance complaints, air quality and other pollution incidents, pest and dog control and licensing. The service works closely with other internal departments, notably the planning service, and external agencies such as the Food Standards Agency, Health & Safety Executive,
Environment Agency, Police, Parish & Town Councils and a number of contractors.
The service provides 24 hour emergency cover for the above services and others within the Authority.

race and ethnicity issues gender issues
No evidence has been collected about customers whose first language is not English and whether they have difficulty accessing service. There is no council wide guidance in relation to translation of letters etc.
Food Hygiene training is not readily accessible by all, as courses are delivered in English language only.
Use of log sheets for nuisance investigations as a first filter could have a negative impact on service users who do not have English as a first language.
There is no evidence to suggest that any of the licensing policies or procedures discriminate on grounds of ethnicity or race. In the case of liquor & gambling licences the policies are a direct reflection of national legislation. For taxi driver licensing there is a dress code, however, it requires smart casual clothing and makes no reference to race and ethnicity.
Waste collection from unauthorised encampments is dealt with informally. This could lead to inconsistency in decisions on how to remove waste.
The processes in place defining how and when enforcement activity should take place are taken from national guidance, best practice and legislation and as such the process concentrates on the offence and not the race or ethnicity of the offender, witness, victim or member of staff involved in the case. However there is a piecemeal approach to the determining how to effectively engage with different racial and ethnic groups and there is a possibility that they could be disadvantaged by this process, specifically in relation to groups who do not have
English as first language. This is only a very minor concern as there are robust procedures in place that require case conferencing and peer challenge of officers decisions prior to action being taken or withdrawn. There are also structures in place to ensure that translation services are available when required. The Enforcement Policy underpins this through its commitment to transparency within the enforcement process.
For most of the services they are not gender specific and therefore no bias is assumed. However, Baby changing facilities in public conveniences are not currently equally available to men & women.

disability issues Use of log sheets for nuisance investigations as a first filter could have a negative impact on service users who are unable to read/write.
Access to Council Buildings under the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) is being addressed by the Property
Services Team. At the time of writing it is anticipated that 80% of buildings will be DDA complaint by the end of
2009 with the remaining 20% compliant by the end of 2010.
Access to the Councils website is governed by the requirements of the W3SC AA standard.
There are concerns that the Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Policies (HCPHH) could be discriminatory in relation to the ability of disabled drivers to apply for licences to drive.
Assisted collections only apply to normal household collections; this should be considered in a wider context notably other collection types such as bulky household collections and the requirement for waste to be placed outside the property for collection.
Clinical waste collections within the area are under review, and it is proposed that Human Hygiene waste be collected along with other residual waste, as undertaken by other Norfolk Waste partners. Collections of waste containing Sharps to be collected by NHS outlets.
Assessments & upgrades of public conveniences for Disability Discrimination Act compliance will be complete by the end of 2010.
Specific concerns were identified in relation to mental health issues; anecdotally it was considered that people with mental health problems were more likely to come to the attention of enforcement agencies. No search for studies to corroborate this view has been undertaken at this time. Whilst the case conference process does specifically require the consideration of both offender and victim in relation to their physical and mental health it was considered that the support processes in place for dealing with such cases are not clearly defined.

age issues religion/belief issues
It is recognised that there is a substantial proportion of elderly people living in North Norfolk. The service often receives calls from relatives of elderly people. How we engage with these groups when the support network doesn’t exist is not clear.
The minimum age for a taxi driver in North Norfolk is 21
There is a more stringent requirement that drivers over the age of 50 need increased frequency of medical tests.
This is over and above national guidance
Assisted collections only apply to normal household collections; this should be considered in a wider context notably other collection types such as bulky household collections and the requirement for waste to be placed outside the property for collection.
Specific concerns were raised in relation to enforcement activity relating to offences committed or witnessed by
Minors. There is specific guidance on how to deal with minors however this has yet to be fully incorporated into the internal processes of the service.
None of the services provided by the Environmental Health / Services specifically discriminates against individuals based on their religion or belief. This is because service is provided for all fairly, regardless of religious belief.
Assisted Burials are dealt with on a case by case basis, where this a will or other documentation suggesting preferred method of committal (disposal) then where possible (legal) the service is provided. Assisted burials are undertaken when no living relatives can be found.
Consideration of religious festivals, days etc are not covered explicitly however visits are normally made by appointment where possible or when businesses are open and trading. Where there are serious breaches of legislation / risks to health action would be taken regardless of religion or belief. sexual orientation issues
None of the services provided by the Environmental Health / Services discriminates against individuals based on their sexual orientation. There is no evidence to suggest that the service would have a negative impact with regard to sexual orientation. This is because service is provided for all fairly, regardless of sexual orientation. proposed actions to mitigate these impacts and revise the service o The policies and processes in place do not at the current time provide a clear and consistent message in relation to how they would avoid discrimination within the enforcement activities of the service. It is unlikely that the adverse impact could be justified on grounds of promoting equal opportunities. o In some cases enforcement of primary legislation may impinge on the rights of others. In such cases there is a clear need to demonstrate the proportionality of the approach. The impact is already mitigated by the peer challenge that occurs during case conferencing processes; however, it is recognised that this needs further work to tighten up and reinforce the understanding of

equality issues. o It is proposed that all formal letters and notices sent out are accompanied by a simple foreign language statement outlining the need for the recipient to seek a translation if required. o Existing policies and procedures will be amended to include Equality Impact Assessment requirements as part of the review cycle for Quality Management System. o Further work is required to develop partnerships with agencies and others in relation to mental health. o Feedback to be provided to the members of the NBRP in relation to the findings of this Equality Impact Assessment o The methods for accessing the service and communications are already in place. Language and age are areas where concern has been identified about how the Services operates. Where negative impacts are identified strategies are usually put in place to overcome them. E.g use of Dictaphone instead of log sheets. Problems arise with users making initial contact with the service, hard to reach groups. Review of access information on letters set by the Department. Access to services and communications strategies need to be identified at a Corporate level in order to ensure that there is a consistent approach across the Council. o Whilst food hygiene training is not readily accessible by all, work needs to be done to ensure that the Council can signpost training for minority groups in order that they can achieve the necessary competency levels. o The Taxi and Private Hire Policies could lead to adverse impacts in relation to applications to drive from people with disabilities and persons over age 50 These policies need to be reviewed against current national best practice and amended if appropriate. o Assisted collections only apply to normal household collections; this should be considered in a wider context notably other collection types such as bulky household collections and the requirement for waste to be placed outside the property for collection.
Clinical waste collections within the area are under review, and it is proposed that Human Hygiene waste be collected along with other residual waste, as per other NWP partners. Clinical Sharps collections to be collected by NHS outlets. o The provision of baby changing facilities in Public Conveniences needs to be assessed. o Assisted (Bulky waste) and Clinical waste collection criteria need to be reviewed as part of the procurement exercise for the next waste and cleansing contract. Once clarified action plan to detail efforts to improve the provision of advice and support to specialist groups. North Norfolk District Council needs to consider this as part of a wider social exclusion policy, as potential conflicts with our polluter pays policy may develop.