Equality Impact Analysis Template

Equality Impact Analysis (EqIA) (or Equality Impact Assessment) aims to make services and public policy better for all service-users and staff and supports value for money by getting council services right first time.

We use EqIAs to enable us to consider all relevant information from an Equality requirements perspective when procuring or restructuring a service, or introducing a new policy or strategy. This analysis of impacts is then reflected in the relevant action plan to get the best outcomes for the Council, its staff and service-users.

EqIAs are used to analyse and assess how the Council’s work might impact differently on different groups of people. EqIAs help the Council to make good decisions for its service-users, staff and residents and provide evidence that those decision conform with the Council’s obligations under the Equality Act 2010.

This template sets out the steps you need to take to complete an EqIA for your project.If you have any questions about your EqIA and/or how to complete this form, please use the contact details at the end of this form.

Title of Project/Service/Policy	Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) Enhanced Partnership (EP)
Team/Department	Transport Hub
Directorate	Economy, Transport & Environment
Provide a comprehensive description of your Project (Service/Policy, etc.) including its Purpose and Scope	East Sussex County Council has received confirmed central government funding of £41,415,025 by the Department for Transport to implement its Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) Enhanced Partnership (EP). Ensure that East Sussex residents and visitors enjoy the highest possible quality bus services that are frequent with a comprehensive choice, and that help to reduce congestion and make a positive contribution to better air quality and decarbonisation. The aims of BSIP are to: · Enhance the bus network through frequency improvements, more evening and weekend journeys, · Enhance bus reliability and reduce journey times though bus priority, including physical infrastructure and virtual systems, such as traffic light priority · Reduce fares for young passengers under the age of 30; simplify fares & ticketing and reduce fares for all bus users with a focus on rural journeys · Improvements on rural bus routes with particular emphasis on flexible/demand responsive transport, and · Provide bus services for all – solidifying a bus network that relates to the needs of all residents and visitors.

Initial assessment of whether your project requires an EqIA

When answering these questions, please keep in mind all legally protected equality characteristics (sex/gender, gender reassignment, religion or belief, age, disability, ethnicity/race, sexual orientation, marriage/civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity) of the people actually or potentially receiving and benefiting from the services or the policy.  

In particular consider whether there are any potential equality related barriers that people may experience when getting to know about, accessing or receiving the service or the policy to be introduced or changed.      

Discuss the results of your Equality assessment with the Equality Lead for your department and agree whether improvements or changes need to be made to any aspect of your Project.

	Question	Yes	No	Don’t Know
1	Is there evidence of different needs, experiences, issues or priorities on the basis of the equality characteristics (listed below) in relation to the service or policy/strategy area?	Yes
2	Are there any proposed changes in the service/policy that may affect how services are run and/or used or the ways the policy will impact different groups?	Yes
3	Are there any proposed changes in the service/policy that may affect service-users/staff/residents directly?	Yes
4	Is there potential for, or evidence that, the service/policy may adversely affect inclusiveness or harm good relations between different groups of people?		No
5	Is there any potential for, or evidence that any part of the service/aspects of the policy could have a direct or indirect discriminatory effect on service-users/staff/residents ?		No
6	Is there any stakeholder (Council staff, residents, trade unions, service-users, VCSE organisations) concerned about actual, potential, or perceived discrimination/unequal treatment  in the service or the Policy on the basis of the equality characteristics set out above that may lead to taking legal action against the Council?		No
7	Is there any evidence or indication of higher or lower uptake of the service by, or the impact of the policy on, people who share the equality characteristics set out above?	Yes

If you have answered “YES” or “DON’T KNOW” to any of the questions above, then the completion of an EqIA is necessary.

The need for an EqIA will depend on:

· How many questions you have answered “yes”, or “don’t know” to;

· The likelihood of the Council facing legal action in relation to the effects of service or the policy may have on groups sharing protected characteristics; and

· The likelihood of adverse publicity and reputational damage for the Council.

Low risk	Medium risk	High risk
X

1. Update on previous EqIAs and outcomes of previous actions (if applicable)

What actions did you plan last time? (List them from the previous EqIA)	What improved as a result? What outcomes have these actions achieved?	What further actions do you need to take? (add these to the Action Plan below)
Not applicable

2. Review of information, equality analysis and potential actions

Consider the actual or potential impact of your project (service, or policy) against each of the equality characteristics.

Protected characteristics groups under the Equality Act 2010	What do you know? Summary of data about your service-users and/or staff	What do people tell you? Summary of service-user and/or staff feedback	What does this mean? Impacts identified from data and feedback (actual and potential)	What can you do? All potential actions to: · advance equality of opportunity, · eliminate discrimination, and · foster good relations
Age	There are no age limits on people travelling by bus; but children and older persons may feel uncomfortable travelling by bus alone, given the fast-paced nature of public transport, concerns about safety (both in relation to accidents and potential for harm/ abuse from other passengers) and inexperience. Cost is sometimes a barrier to bus use.	No specific feedback at present, but will monitor this.	Actions to ensure bus drivers will be more welcoming, understanding and confident when equipped with better customer service skills. Address concerns about safety where possible. Consider options to reduce costs of travel through targeted concessions.	Monitor feedback through established channels and passenger forums. A requirement of the Enhanced Partnership is that bus drivers will receive customer service training as part of their employment. Focus will be given on people sharing protected characteristics, particularly around how bus drivers can assist persons that may be considered vulnerable, i.e. children and older people. Increased bus frequency, operational hours and improved bus stop infrastructure should lead to an increase in patronage, and increased natural surveillance (i.e. more buses on the road, resulting in more bus passengers on board buses and around bus stops, and more bus drivers/buses with CCTV and lighting). Reduce fares for young passengers under the age of 30 to encourage greater bus use.
Disability	Disabled people may feel uneasy around using public transport, with concerns about safety or lack of assistance when needed and/or barriers created by physical accessibility of buses.		There is no change to vehicles used for public transport – these already meet regulation requirements. Plan improvements to roadside bus stop infrastructure where funding permits.	Monitor feedback through established channels and passenger forums. All buses in East Sussex are required to meet Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations and be class 1 & 2 wheelchair accessible. Buses must have lowering suspension to further assist embarkment & dis-embarkment, and offer priority seating. Disabled persons may be eligible for free bus travel through the English National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS). ENCTS concessions will be accepted on board any services introduced under the BSIP. Improved bus stop infrastructure will help to aid physical mobility, i.e. installation of more raised kerbs and improvements to accessible bus service information.
Gender reassignment	People who are trans may have negative perceptions about safety on public transport.	More frequent buses and improved safety features on buses and at bus stops will increase natural surveillance	Increased natural surveillance will mean people may feel safety when on public transport, including at bus stops.	Monitor feedback through established channels and passenger forums. Propose to bus partners that driver training covers support to people in situations that may be a hate crime or hate incident.
Pregnancy and maternity	Those pregnant or in maternity may have negative perceptions around safety on public transport or feel concerned about potential accidents to them or to babies and young children.	Bus operators in East Sussex designate priority seating for pregnant people, as well as space designated for pushchairs. It is common courtesy for passengers to give up their seat to those who are more likely to need to sit whilst the vehicle is in motion, and the bus driver may ask anyone in those seats to offer their seat to disabled or pregnant persons if needed.	Those pregnant or who have small children or babies have priority space on board buses.	Monitor feedback through established channels and passenger forums. Bus drivers will be given appropriate training to make those pregnant with young children/babies feel comfortable whilst on board buses.
Race/ethnicity Including migrants, refugees and asylum seekers	People of different races/ethnicities may feel negative perceptions around public transport, especially around aspects of personal safety. People from some ethnic groups are more likely to have low incomes and therefore experience ticket prices as being harder to afford.			Monitor feedback through established channels and passenger forums. More frequent buses and increased natural surveillance will mean people may feel a greater sense of safety when on public transport, including at bus stops. Lower fares may encourage those on lower incomes to further utilise buses.
Religion or belief	People with different religions or beliefs may feel negative perceptions about safety on public transport.			Monitor feedback through established channels and passenger forums. As above re: potential greater sense of safety as a result of natural surveillance and driver training.
Sex/Gender	Women in particular, of any age, may feel uneasy when travelling alone on public transport, especially late at night.			Monitor feedback through established channels and passenger forums. As above re: potential greater sense of safety as a result of natural surveillance and driver training.
Sexual orientation	Persons of any sexual orientation, but especially non-heterosexual persons, may feel uneasy when travelling on public transport in relation to personal safety.			Monitor feedback through established channels and passenger forums. As above re: potential greater sense of safety as a result of natural surveillance and driver training.
Marriage and civil partnership	No impact identified at this stage	N/A	N/A	N/A
Impacts on community cohesion	Community cohesion and social isolation are very much one of the broader points BSIP aims to address.		Better public transport links will contribute to reduced isolation, increase access to educational and employment opportunities and increase opportunities for people to interact in a wider range of areas.	Monitor feedback through established channels and passenger forums.

Additional categories

(identified locally as potentially causing / worsening inequality)

Characteristic	What do you know?	What do people tell you?	What does this mean?	What can you do?
Rurality	Rural bus services are currently very sparse.		More buses are needed to serve rural areas.	Monitor feedback through established channels and passenger forums. BSIP aims to reduce fares for all bus users with a focus on rural journeys and improve rural bus routes with particular emphasis on flexible/demand responsive transport
Carers	Disabled people may require carers and both persons may use bus transport.	Carers of people requiring them are already eligible for free bus travel through the English National Concessionary Travel Scheme (ENCTS). ENCTS concessions will be accepted on board any services introduced or falling under the realm of BSIP.	Ultimately there will be improved bus services for carers. No negative impacts have been identified through any BSIP scheme.	Monitor feedback through established channels and passenger forums.
Other groups that may be differently affected (including but not only: homeless people, substance users, care leavers)	Lower income earners Lower income earners may see public transport as prohibitively expensive and opt to use their private vehicles instead or not be able to travel easily if they have no alternative.		Lower income earners The BSIP will see lower and simpler fares introduced across the county.	Monitor feedback through established channels and passenger forums. Lower fares are planned for all; particularly for those in the 16-19 and 20-30 age brackets.
Assessment of overall impacts and any further recommendations - include assessment of cumulative impacts (where a change in one service/policy/project may have an impact on another)
The Bus Service Improvement Plan, delivered through the Enhanced Partnership, has been subject to stakeholder engagement and public consultation in order to address its impact on protected characteristics and to integrate the perspectives of these groups. It is recognised, through other regional local authorities, that there may be some negative perceptions of safety of public transport for certain groups in society, including women, LGTBQ people, people from ethnic minority backgrounds and/or diverse religions, are thought to feel more vulnerable. However, the BSIP will improve passenger security by increasing natural surveillance as passenger numbers rise; and through more reliable and frequent bus services. This, along with improved safety features (such as lighting and CCTV) at stops and on-board buses, should help to improve the safety of vulnerable users. The BSIP should see increased social mobility for all users in the county, and help to encourage more people to use public transport through better bus services, lower & simpler fares and improved cross-service integration in key locations. The BSIP programme compromises of many individual schemes which will create the desired end state. These schemes will be delivered throughout the programme and should be delivered in full by March 2025. Dynamic equality impact assessments (EqIA) will take place for individual schemes as and when they begin. Should it be identified that a scheme may disproportionately impact a protected characteristic, then a written EqIA will be undertaken.

3. List detailed data and/or community feedback that informed your EqIA

Source and type of data (e.g. research, or direct engagement (interviews), responses to questionnaires, etc.)	Date	Gaps in data	Actions to fill these gaps: who else do you need to engage with? (add these to the Action Plan below, with a timeframe)
Local Authority Officer tacit knowledge: both East Sussex CC and the knowledge/learnings of other authorities through professional networking bodies	November 2022
Passenger surveys	On-going
Bus operator consultation	On-going
Freeths legal governance documentation	September 2022
Engagement with the Department for Transport	On-going
Consultation with Transport Focus	On-going

4.      Prioritised Action Plan

NB: These actions must now be transferred to service or business plans and monitored to ensure they achieve the outcomes identified.

Impact identified and group(s) affected	Action planned	Expected outcome	Measure of success	Timeframe
All actions identified above are built into the BSIP programme
(Add more rows as needed)

EqIA sign-off: (for the EqIA to be final an email must be sent from the relevant people agreeing it, or this section must be signed)

Staff member competing Equality Impact Analysis: Jamie Mardle                                   Date: November 2022

Directorate Management Team rep or Head of Service:     Craig Lamberton                            Date: November 2022

Equality lead:                                                                                  Sarah Tighe-Ford                           Date:  December 2022