Equalities Impact Assessment
Day Services for People with Physical
Disabilities
Date: July 2007
Record of Equality Impact Assessment
1. Department/Service Area
Adult Social Care Department -Day Service for people with physical disabilities.
2. Equality Areas Assessed
The following areas are being assessed- Race, disability, gender, age, religion and belief
and sexual orientation.
3. Timescale of the assessment
The assessment took place between December 2006 and July 2007
4. Officers involved in the EIA
Service Manager- lead on services for people with Physical disabilities
Team Manager responsible for project managing the day services changes
Planning Officer lead on this EIA.
5. Policy, procedure, service assessed
The refocusing of existing in house day services to enable greater independence, choice
and flexibility by providing alternative day time support. The main groups affected by these
changes are -People with physical disabilities, predominately existing users of day
services and staff currently working in the day centres.
6. Data Collection and consultation
The demographic and current usage data shows that the services are not attracting
younger people and that referrals have gone down whilst length of stay is high. The age
range of most users has over a period of time reached the 55-75 brackets and that most
people have had their disabilities from birth or for many years. There are no black or Asian
users within in house provision and only 12 at other centres. There are no specific patterns
regarding location or age range other than district that have centres have significantly
more day time users of services than those that have not, e.g. Oadby and Wigston have 4
people attending day centres, Charnwood has 46.
7. Consultation.
Day service Group
A Day Service User Group was formed in 2005. In summary this group indicated that in
certain centres service users who had been together for a number of years wanted to
remain so, which has been accommodated in Melton and that people were anxious about
considering alternatives to traditional centres but were willing to discuss this with the Day
Service Project Officer.
Individual reviews
Individual reviews of service users indicated the specific changes that they wanted, though
there was some initial resistance to making a change of venue.
Consultation with local BME groups.
This is an outstanding area of need, as although contact has been made with groups they
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have been unable to respond at this time. Further engagement is required. Statistically
BME groups have not taken up traditional services so further work is needed to ensure
that changes are inclusive.
Consultation with the County Council Disabled Workers Group.
In January 2007 the day service changes were presented to the County Councils Disabled
persons group. They commented that they were overall in support of the changes and
think a variety of support needs to be available, depending on individual needs. The group
asked to be consulted with the action plan when competed.
Scrutiny Committee
The proposed changes were presented to Cabinet in July 2006, where agreement was
reached to supporting people to consider a range of alternatives to traditional day centres
and maintain a building based service in Melton.
Past Consultation
Citizen Jury 2004 and Disabled equality Scheme.
A specific Citizens jury for disabled people was convened in 2004. This sited the need
to support people to have access to mainstream services and the need to consult more
frequently with disabled people.
The Disability scheme requires the council to ensure that its access to services and
actual services are equally available to disabled people, specifically to support more
people into employment and increase the use of direct payments.
On going consultation forums
Service Development Group.
Since 2004 an internal service development group meets to discuss issues in respect
of services for people with physical disabilities, membership includes voluntary sector
and service user representatives. This bi monthly forum is updated on the progress of
the day service changes.
Other day services
There are a variety of other day services that the adult social care contract with, the
main ones being Headway and Mosaic, these services tend to have smaller numbers
per day and provide personalised services.
Government Policy and legislative framework.
The white paper “our health our care our say” focuses on seven outcomes and pulls
together a range of guidance and policy from central government for people in receipt
of social care services. It relates to day services in respect of providing more person
centred services and supporting disabled people to exercise more choice and control
over their lives. Therefore any future model or package of support needs to reflect this
within its aims and objectives.
Consultation with workers at the centres
On going staff meetings have covered the following areas:
General outcome for workers regarding equality and Human resources issues.
Adjustments due to their disability. Advice on flexible working arrangements to enable
parenting and carer roles and career development is available to all staff.
Opportunities for stress management as a consequent of changes.
Future recruitment needs to be able to attract a representative work force in respect of
race, gender and disability and current recruitment processes are in place in respect of
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this.
8. Conclusions
Meeting the social care needs of disabled people
As the main client group of the service are disabled service users it is crucial that the new
service model is able to reflect their needs. People have different aspiration and needs for
a day time service. Therefore clear aims and objectives for the services are required and
need communicated clearly to service users and professionals. This will enable people to
make an informed decision about what service they choose.
The day service model needs to decide what areas of need it is meeting and effectively
communicate this to commissioners and service users in the form of a leaflet or other
recordable formats.
For example it is covering the following areas;





Short term rehabilitation leading to more independent living
Longer term person centred planning to improve quality or life outcomes
Social support to reduce isolation and maintain physical and mental wellbeing.
Respite for carers
Meeting the different generational needs as age range span 18-64 and how it
supports people over 65.
Whilst there are significant differences in day time support in learning disabilities and
mental health services there are some useful models available in theses areas. See
intranet site.
The favourable impact should be that people receive a more individual person centred
service and as their equality needs should be identified clearly within their person centred
plan any individual adverse impact will be identified and addressed. This will need
monitoring.
Physical environment and impact on disability.
As the services need to be more flexible, responsive and personalised within the same
cost and resources consideration needs to be made to the potentially added cost of an
individual’s one to one support in mainstream services. People may need support to form
new social groups or maintain existing social networks and this will need to be part of their
individual review.
Impact on carers
During individual assessments and care planning the needs of carers will be taken into
account, particularly as a change of day time activity, may impact on carer’s respite
needs.
Impact due to age and varying needs and interests.
The service changes need to reflect the significant differences in ages and abilities of
service users and not make assumptions that people of similar disabilities or ages what to
do activities together purely based on their age or disability.
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Impact due to race, culture and religious belief.
Further action needs to be planned to ensure the engagement of people from various
cultural and racial backgrounds. It is believed that a consequence of providing more
personalised solutions for people, rather than only providing traditional day centres, will
support the needs of Minority groups. This needs to be tested and closely monitored.
Impact due to gender
No specific issues have arisen during consultation regarding an adverse impact on people
due to gender, as current practice looks at issues such as privacy during personal care
tasks and the choice of same sex personal carer. Access to one to one personal care of
the same gender needs to be monitored.
Impact due to sexual orientation.
Basically this is an area that is not monitored and that further exploration of staffs
awareness and training needs need to be explored so that they are able to support people
to raise any aspects of their life or care that they wish to in their person centred plan.
ACTION(S)
Disability Individual support for all users and their carers affected by the
changes to existing day services. Formal support plan reviews
carried out. Support from project worker to identify alternative
provision where appropriate.
Users and carers of existing day services to be consulted with
and kept informed. Aim to report on progress and respond to
any individual concerns. Clarity about aims of services
recorded and communicated to current and future service
users.
Unit cost of direct payments of day time activities monitored in
respect of its ability to provide the level of need and choice to
service users.
Race
HOW/WHO
Team manager lead.
Service manager lead.
Service manager lead
Day service staff to be given individual HR advice re the effects
on their future role and function. TUPE arrangements in place
for Norman Way.
Training to be delivered in respect of personalised services.
Ensure resources are fairly distributed across the county and
monitor take up based on statistical analysis in this EIA.
HR
Invite local B&ME groups to meet to discuss the changes and
visit existing services.
More work on finding available resources for people from
B&ME communities to be established and communicated to
commissioning workers.
Clear information about accessing services and what they
provide in particular to B&ME communities.
Monitor take up of alternative day services by people from
B&ME communities.
Planning Officer
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Staff development
Service manager lead
Ensure religious centres have access to information about
Religious social care services.
belief
Ensure assessments and reviews consider an individuals
religious beliefs and that any group activities consider religious
beliefs so as not to exclude.
Carers assessments to pick up any decrease in respite care
as a consequence of user choosing a reduced hours option,
e.g. gym class for 2 hours instead of 6 hours day centre time.
Carers
Specific monitoring of day service users against the type of day
time activities they choose
Support the development of similar changes in older people’s
services
Support the development of Gloucester House for older users
in Melton.
Support opportunities for people to develop social groups as
well as individual day time activity.
Monitor the access to same sex support particularly personal
Gender care via SISS. Consider training for day service managers
regarding gender and transgender equality.
Discuss with HR how the department is monitoring sexual
Sexual
orientation. Ensure any issues identified are addresses by
orientati person centred plan. Look at staffs training and awareness
on
needs.
Age
Monitor
ing
arrange
ments
Service Development Group
Meet with the Disabled workers group in 6 months after this
EIA agreed.
Collate feedback from individual teams.
Evaluation of implementation of day services strategy to
include the review of qualitative and quantative information in 6
months time.
Questionnaire for day service users, main carers and providers
on impact of service changes and including specific questions
relating to equality.
11. Authorisation
a) Name and position of
officer authorising the
EIA (this should be the
head of service)
12. Contact
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CAT
Review team
Service development
workers.
Individual
Commissioners of
services and Line
Managers.
Planning Officer
Service manager
Team manager lead
Team manager lead
Planning officer
Service Manager
Planning Officer
Planning Officer
Team
Manager/Planning
Officer
Planning Officer
a) Contact details of officer
to discuss EIA with if
different from section 11.
above
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Appendix
Summary data BME users day services- 16-64- in March 2007 who have a Physical
Disability.
8% of total the total support from day centres is provided to people from BME communities
though all from independent providers.
16-64
Blaby
Charnwood
Harborough
Hinckley &
Bosworth
Melton
Coalville
Oadby/Wigston
Other
Total
White
8
41
16
34
Asian
3
5
0
1
Total
12
46
16
35
14
18
2
9
142
0
1
2
1
12
14
19
4
10
154
Age range
16-21
22-64
65-74
75-84
85
White
1
141
26
41
30
239
Asian
2
10
8
3
Total
3
150
34
45
30
261
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Ethnicity Leicestershire County Council
Main points
94% white, 6 % BME
Largest BME populations in Charnwood, Oadby & Wigston therefore numbers
should be reflecting this.
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Appendix 2 – background
This is the model is being consulted on for mental health day services in the
County.
There are five elements of support in the model – shown in the centre part of
the diagram. The outside sections explain what they do.
Whilst the outcomes may be different for people with physical disabilities the
graphic display of what they are doing and why may be useful.
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