Welsh Assembly and the lost equality impact assessment

Massive thank you FOI bloody brilliant effort

“I can assure you x, y and z took place”

But you can’t assure me, can you, because you can’t provide receipts. I continue to be really quite amazed at the shocking lack of care and attention in so many sectors of government. I mean, FFS, how long have they been getting away with this sort of shit that they thought it was acceptable?

I don't think deleting all emails after a year is in line with the transparency agenda for public services. I'm sure you're heartily tired of this FOI but if you want to escalate I think it's through the ICO.

They can't establish the existence of an important public interest document they claim once existed.

It's absolutely ludicrous isn't it. Perhaps they could just confirm those exact words.

but I can't see anything in there about deleting all emails over a year old.

So where does the directive come from that has made them delete all the emails? Another question they need to answer. Otherwise we could all say that any old time. Oh, we delete everything after a year, six months, three days, this phone call.

They must be going through a lot of ice packs over there, FOIrequester, given how many feet are being held to the fire.

Brilliant stuff. Well done. Tenacity will rule.

They can't establish the existence of an important public interest document they claim once existed. Seeing a pattern with this and other FOI responses around this issue across the country.

New reply from Welsh Government following my request for an internal review.

www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/documents_relating_to_the_equali#incoming-1444828

They say that all relevant emails would have been automatically deleted and that formal minutes are not required for all internal meetings, so they have no more information other than the single document they supplied previously.

It's quite a long response and includes a link to their retention and disposal schedule, which I had already seen, but I can't see anything in there about deleting all emails over a year old.

They have also supplied another document embedded in the Word document. I will ask them to extract it, since their response should be in an easily accessible format. It's the summary of consultation responses which I posted a link to earlier in this thread.

MoleSmokes I had seen the Wrexham guidance, but it's quite old now, which is why I chose Denbighshire for the FOI, as it was a recent policy, and it also stated it was 'policy' rather than 'guidance'. I'm not sure if there's a requirement to carry out an EIA for 'guidance', but a policy definitely has that requirement.

Viva look like a bunch of enthusiastic amateurs. I don't know what makes them qualified to write policy for schools.

I've made another attempt to get some information about the EIA for the Transgender Action Plan.

www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/information_about_the_equality_i

This may be my last FOI on this. I've also written to my constituency AM and some of my regional AMs about the loss of the EIA.

It all sounds a lot of fun, very empowering, etc. (not joking) but . . . incredibly amateurish and unaware of the need to involve and consult other stakeholders.

There must be someone / some other organisation guiding this, surely??

I'm on a roll. Just checked my sons school policy (new) and under Equality (I'm totally paraphrasing) is the requirement to train new staff (just new?) on the LGBT guidelines and the people responsible for that are-

Headteacher
A.N. Other

and....VIVA

Also, this

From the annual report of the charity-

"Transactivists Project
The Transactivists project saw parents and carers of Transgender, gender neutral, pangender and gender fluid young people develop a positive network of peer support, using the insights of other parents in similar situations to help them navigate their child’s coming out journey. Young people took ownership of the project and received training in community development. This enabled them to engage with service providers to advocate for more trans-inclusive services; for example, scrutinising the drafts of Denbighshire County Council’s new Trans Policy for Schools (which was developed by the staff of the Viva Transactivist Project with input from the beneficiaries and from school staff). At the same time, young people who were previously isolated were given time and space to meet new people, form friendships and ultimately develop a self-sustaining network of peers who could be called upon for support outside of the group. When surveyed, 97% of the respondents stated that they felt less lonely and isolated and had experienced improved social opportunities and friendships as a result of their involvement with Transactivists.

Job description c+p

Dear Applicant,
Thank you for your interest in this post.
Viva LGBT+ - is part of West Rhyl Young People’s Project (WRYPP). We are looking for an experienced, highly motivated and enthusiastic lesbian, gay, bisexual or trans (LGBT+) Youth Worker to lead a team providing support and informal education for young people who identify themselves as lesbian, gay, bisexual and/or trans, or who may be questioning or unsure of their sexual and/or gender identity.
An important aspect of this role is for the post holder to serve as a positive LGBT+ role model to young people.
Viva LGBT+ aims to make contact with and engage young people who are currently experiencing social exclusion due to their emergent sexual orientation and/or gender identity and to provide them with a safe environment and opportunities to meet others of the same age to develop friendships and to explore the issues of importance to them.
The Youth Work Curriculum Statement for Wales states: “Youth work is driven by the voluntary principle which recognises that young people have the right to choose whether to engage with youth work provision”.
LOCATIONS
You will facilitate groupwork sessions and conduct outreach work with young people in a variety of settings in various locations across Denbighshire, Conwy, Flintshire and Wrexham. You will be required to work at up to 3 of the 4 sites each week.
EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY
All staff of West Rhyl Young People’s Project are responsible for upholding high standards of inclusivity, as required by the Equality Act 2010, when planning and delivering youth work. All staff must ensure that pro-active, anti-oppressive practice is adopted at all times; in line with the WRYPP’s Equality and Diversity Policy.
The ability to communicate in Welsh is particularly desirable.

Wonder if they got paid for "consultancy" work on that, dontdoxmeeither?

From the website, quirky and arty though it is, it looked like nothing has been going on at all, ever - very odd.

Did you have a look at the Job Descriptions? I didn't, so don't know if they help to shed any light.

@MoleSmokes

I am very near Rhyl and in my (recently finished) last job would have definitely been aware of this group, had it been of any note. As it is, I've never heard of them! At all.

The website is scant. The Facebook page shows little activity bar some recent cancellation of events. Further digging shows it's part of a registered charity called West Rhyl Young people's project, which also wasn't very prominent during my employment.

It's certainly not an organisation that one would consult heavily for such a big issue/change. In my humble opinion. Not sure if any of that info is useful

FOIrequester This is the "Viva" organisation mentioned in "the wrong document":

www.vivalgbt.co.uk

It's in Rhyl and there's bugger all on the website apart from tattoo type hearts and a sheep wearing spotted pyjamas! They are hiring though and there are Job Descriptions to download so they might be rather more illuminating!

Have you and the Denbighshire / Wrexham people here already got copies of "Transgender Guidance for Wrexham Schools 2015"?
www.genderidentity.wales.nhs.uk/sitesplus/documents/1127/TransGender%20Guidance%20Schools%20Final.pdf

Apologies if I'm being thick/ignorant

If they haven't done one, have they broken some kind of law (their own??) etc?

If so, is there a process whereby they can be for want of a better word, prosecuted for that?

What I'm clumsily trying to say is, they are clearly stringing this out probably in the hope that you'll give up. Is there a higher body that will make them sit up and respond quicker? Or is that the industry already contacted that hasn't responded yet?

And as always, it's not the offence, it's the cover-up.

Well done pursuing this, I think there's much in what you say that the process is long and tedious and they're making it more so, and (like the BBC) many people just give up.

It seems from what has happened that the EQIA doesn't exist and it seems that there's no evidence of it ever having existed. Which would suggest that the resulting document is invalid, and which would also seem to call into question why it appears that the need for the process was recorded, and why it looks from the final document as if one was done.

The results of the investigation will certainly be interesting.

is it possible to do an FOI request for all internal Welsh Govt correspondence pertinent to the search for the mysteriously lost impact assessment?

I could do that, but I'm not sure if there'd really be any point. Are you thinking about this in terms of finding out whether they actually looked for it? I've already gone to the ICO with this one (still waiting to hear back from them though), so I'm hoping to find out more from their investigation.

This is what I wrote back to Denbighshire Council this morning:

"I requested the Equality Impact Assessment for the “Gender identity policy and implementation guidance” for schools in Denbighshire. You have sent me the Well-being Impact Assessment."

"There is an Equality section in this document, but most of the fields have been left blank. Do you also have a separate, detailed, Equality Impact Assessment for this policy? If so, please will you supply that as originally requested."

They sent this back:

"Internal Review Acknowledgement"

"I acknowledge receipt of your email received 19/09/2019 requesting that we review our response to FOI 5321 My understanding is that the issues you have raised are as follows: We did not send the correct document."

"A review will be conducted in accordance with the Act and we aim to respond to you by 17/10/2019 ."

I didn't actually ask for an internal review, but I suppose by doing it this way it gives them another month do decide what to do, or maybe they're just hoping I'll go away.

Well done, OP.

The crux of the issue is this... Until a woman or girl is subjected to an unwanted situation, it will be down to her to take it to court under sex discrimination laws.

Wow.

@FOIrequester Thanks for that.

I notice it mentions infrastructure. I have asked DS if anything has changed toilet wise and he says not (so far, I guess)

I'll certainly keep my ear out for any awareness sessions and feedback.

Off to scrutinise my Denbighshire school website to see if anything has changed policy wise recently

Slightly off topic.
Our 'Council' run gyms haven't bothered to do risk assessments on changing to mixed sex changing rooms (the cubicles aren't floor to ceiling)

I spoke to their insurers (Zurich)

The crux of the issue is this... Until a woman or girl is subjected to an unwanted situation, it will be down to her to take it to court under sex discrimination laws.

How many traumatised women do you know who have the money or the inclination to re-traumatise themselves in a court of law?

FOI requester - the lost impact assessment- is it possible to do an FOI request for all internal Welsh Govt correspondence pertinent to the search for the mysteriously lost impact assessment?

I still wonder if the duties under the Ending Violence against Women Act (or whatever it’s called) would be a useful stick to apply here.