Equal, Diversity and Inclusion Policy

1. STATEMENT OF INTENT

1.1 Moortown Golf Club (“The Club”) is committed to the principles of equality and diversity throughout its workforce, membership and any others with whom the Club engages

1.2 The Club considers that everyone should play their part in making golf inclusive and aims to ensure that all people, irrespective of background or Protected Characteristics, have a genuine opportunity to participate in golf.

1.3 We will not disadvantage any individual by imposing conditions or requirements which cannot be justified.

2. WHO DOES THIS POLICY APPLY TO?

2.1 This Policy shall apply to, and be binding upon the Club, its General Committee, staff, volunteers, contractors, and representatives working, holding office or acting for or on behalf of the Club.

3. RELATED POLICIES

This policy works with other documents adopted by the Club, in particular:

• The Equal Opportunities Policy and Grievance Procedure which relates to the relationship between the Club and those it employs and the recruitment process.
• The Disciplinary Regulations which may be used to deal with alleged breaches of this policy and which relate to employees and members respectively.
• Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy, and Safeguarding Adults Policy, which will be followed in respect of any matters which give rise to a safeguarding concern.
• Club Rules which set out the standards of behaviour and conduct expected from members, those who are attending Club events, or representing, working for or otherwise engaging with the Club in some capacity.
• The Complaints Policies which may be used to deal with concerns raised about the actions of the Club and which relate to employees and members respectively.
• Data Protection Policy which sets out how we will handle personal data, including data collected to monitor diversity in line with this Policy.

4. OUR POLICY

A. WHAT WE WILL DO

1. Promote fairness, equality, diversity and respect for everyone working, volunteering or participating in the sport of golf or otherwise engaging with the Club.
2. Ensure that all competitions, events and activities that are administered by the Club are carried out in a fair and equitable way (except where specific situations and conditions prevent this, or where we consider that Positive Action is a proportionate way to achieve a legitimate aim).
3. Monitor and review Club policies, procedures and regulations to ensure that they are consistent with the requirements of this policy, including policies relating to admission to membership.
4. Where practical we will take steps to monitor the diversity of the Club’s members, participants, players, volunteers and others that we may engage with in order to measure and assess the impact of this policy
5. Provide appropriate training and support to staff, volunteers, officials and others.
6. Make reasonable adjustments for those with a disability.
7. Publish this policy on the Club website.

B. WHAT WE WON’T DO

1. Discriminate against anyone, either directly or indirectly, on the basis of a Protected Characteristic.
2. Subject anyone to less favourable treatment on the basis of them doing a Protected Act (victimisation).
3. Subject anyone to harassment in relation to a Protected Characteristic.

5. REPORTING PROCEDURES

If you are concerned about the behaviour or conduct of someone at a Club event, someone representing the Club, or any other breach of this policy:

5.1 Please report the matter to Secretary/Manager [[email protected]] giving as much detail as possible.
5.2 If the matter is reported verbally, please follow up the verbal report in writing as soon as possible (usually within 7 days of the alleged incident).
5.3 The Club will consider the appropriate way to deal with the matter as set out in paragraph 6.

6. HOW WE WILL DEAL WITH BREACHES OF THIS POLICY

6.1 When we receive a report or a concern that relates to this policy we will ask the Secretary/Manager to consider the matter initially. They will consider the appropriate next steps, which may include the following:

a. seeking further information in relation to matters raised;
b. seeking guidance from an appropriate body or organisation;
c. referring the matter to another body or organisation;
d. dealing with the matter informally;
e. deciding which procedure is the most appropriate, such as the Employee Disciplinary Procedure, the Safeguarding Policies or the Disciplinary Regulations, to progress the matter formally.

6.2 The Club will usually inform the person reporting the matter of the next steps and/or the outcome of the matter. However, there may be circumstances in which we are not able to disclose full details to the reporting individual. This may be because the law prevents us from doing so, because some information is confidential or to protect the safety or wellbeing of those involved.

APPENDIX A

KEY CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS
The Equality Act 2010 and Discrimination
Every individual and organisation to whom this Policy applies must not act in a way which is directly or indirectly discriminatory on the basis of a Protected Characteristic.
The Equality Act 2010 makes it unlawful to discriminate directly or indirectly against individuals or groups with certain “Protected Characteristics”. The “Protected Characteristics” are listed in section 4 of the Act:

• Age
• Disability
• Gender Reassignment
• Marriage and Civil Partnership
• Pregnancy and Maternity
• Race
• Religion or Belief
• Sex
• Sexual Orientation

Direct Discrimination
Direct Discrimination is defined at section 13(1) of the Equality Act 2010: “A person (A) discriminates against another (B) if, because of a protected characteristic, A treats B less favourably than A treats or would treat others.”
For example, if an action or decision is taken by a club which treats females less favourably than males, this would be considered direct discrimination on the grounds of sex, which is a protected characteristic.

Indirect Discrimination
Indirect Discrimination is defined at section 19(1) of the Equality Act 2010: “A person (A) discriminates against another (B) if A applies to B a provision, criterion or practice which is discriminatory in relation to a relevant protected characteristic of B’s.”
Indirect discrimination occurs where less favourable treatment is not the main effect or objective of an action or decision.
The nature of indirect discrimination is that the discriminatory effect can be an unexpected or unforeseen effect of a good faith decision. Complaints of indirect discrimination should be considered carefully and objectively, and not dismissed out of hand purely because the effect was not an expected or intentional one.

Actions and Intentions
An action or decision can still be considered discriminatory even if the less favourable treatment is unintentional. It may not always be obvious to the perpetrator that their actions are discriminatory. Indirect discrimination is often unintentional, but it is not a defence to an allegation of discrimination to say that the perpetrator did not mean to discriminate against a person or group.
Discrimination can arise out of actions and decisions but can also arise out of omissions and failure to take actions or decisions.

Reasonable Adjustments
Everybody to whom this Policy applies is under a duty to make reasonable adjustments to avoid discriminating against any individual or group with the Protected Characteristic of Disability.
The duty is to make reasonable adjustments. It is not unreasonable for adjustments to cost time, money, or other resources. However, an adjustment may not be reasonable if the cost is disproportionately high or making the adjustment would be unfeasible. The resources required to make an adjustment are an important factor to be considered in deciding whether an adjustment is reasonable.

Positive Action
It can be lawful to make decisions that discriminate on the basis of a Protected Characteristic in very limited and exceptional circumstances, if the discrimination is a ‘Positive Action’ taken in order to address an underrepresented group or Protected Characteristic. Positive Actions must be reasonable, justifiable, and clearly linked to a legitimate aim. Where a club decides to take Positive Action in respect of an underrepresented group, it should carefully record its decision making and the evidence it has considered, and review the practice regularly to ensure that the Positive Action does not continue for longer than reasonably necessary.

APPENDIX B

HARASSMENT
Harassment is defined in section 26(1) of the Equality Act 2010. Harassment occurs where a person engages in unwanted conduct related to a Protected Characteristic (outlined in the Equality Act 2010), which has the purpose of either:

• Violating the other person’s dignity; or
• Creates an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for the other person.

In determining whether conduct amounts to harassment, regard is had to:

• The perception of the victim
• Whether it is reasonable for the conduct to have the perceived effect
• The wider circumstances of the matter.

Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment occurs where a person engages in unwanted conduct of a sexual nature which has the purpose or effect of violating someone’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for them.

The Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023 introduces a new legal duty for employers in the UK from 26 October 2024 to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace, and increases potential compensation amounts. Previously there was no proactive legal obligation on employers to take steps to prevent sexual harassment at work.

Importantly, this duty extends not only to preventing employee on employee sexual harassment, but also to preventing sexual harassment of employees by members and third parties, such as visitors and contractors.

Employees cannot make a standalone claim for a breach of the preventative duty. This means they cannot solely file a lawsuit based on the employer’s failure to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment. Instead, a claim for this must be pursued in conjunction with an existing claim, meaning that the employee needs to have already experienced and reported an incident of sexual harassment to claim that the employer failed in their preventative duty.

One Off Incidents
A single, isolated, or one-off incident can still amount to harassment. The key consideration is the purpose or effect of the conduct.

Protection from Harassment Act 1997
Harassment can still occur even if it not based on a Protected Characteristic. The Protection from Harassment Act 1997 made it a civil, and sometimes a criminal, offence to carry out a course of conduct that amounts to harassment.

APPENDIX C

VICTIMISATION
Victimisation is defined in section 27(1) of the Equality Act 2010.
Victimisation occurs where a person suffers a detriment because they do a protected act or are believed to have done a protected act.

Protected Act
A protected act includes making a complaint (whether in writing or not, formally or informally) or bringing legal proceedings under the Equality Act 2010 in relation to discrimination, harassment, bullying, or any other issue related to equality, diversity or Protected Characteristics.

Detriment
A detriment can be any less favourable treatment, including direct acts such as suspensions, fines, sanctions, and verbal and physical aggression.
It is not necessary to show that somebody is being treated less favourably than somebody else who did not do a protected act, only that they have been subject to a detriment because of a protected act.

Examples

In a golfing context, some examples of unlawful victimisation include:

• Initiating disciplinary proceedings against a person as a result of making a complaint about discrimination or harassment.
• Ignoring a person’s valid input into the management of a club after that person has made a complaint.
• De-selecting a player from a squad or team because that person has made a complaint.