Compliance and enforcement 

Complying with the general duty

If a public authority does not meet the general duty, its actions (or failure to act) can be challenged in a High Court (or Court of Session in Scotland) for judicial review.  A claim for judicial review can be made by one or more people with an interest in the matter, or the Commission. The Commission can also use its powers of formal investigation to enforce the general duty. If the Commission has sufficient information and belief that unlawful discrimination is taking place, it can mount a formal investigation into the relevant actions of a named body. At the end of the formal investigation process, a finding of discrimination can be made and the Commission can serve a non-discrimination notice on the named body.

Complying with the specific duties

If a public authority does not meet any of its specific duties it could face enforcement action by the Commission under section 71D of the amended Race Relations Act.

Read Enforcing the race equality duties below for more information about the Commissions enforcement role in race equality duty documents.

Assessing compliance

The Commission for Racial Equality has produced an assessment template for race equality schemes and race equality policies (RESs/REPs). Please find this template in the race equality duty documents list.

We encourage public authorities to use this template to assess their own schemes and to make improvements as required.  Bodies with a performance management role, such as strategic health authorities or inspectorates, will also find this a useful tool for assessing the schemes of the authorities for which they are responsible.

Enforcing the race equality duties

The Commission is committed to working in partnership with public authorities to help them their legal responsibilities under the Race Relations Act.  We are also committed to using the full range of our enforcement powers appropriately.  The Commission is the only body that has powers to enforce the specific duties to promote race equality.

If we are satisfied a public authority has failed (or is failing) to meet its specific duties it can serve a compliance notice.  Where the Commission has information that that public authority may be failing to meet its specific duties, we will contact the authority to alert them that we may be ‘minded’ to issue a compliance notice.  If the public authority fails to adequately respond to this warning, then we can issue the notice.

The Commission has initiated compliance proceedings with over 150 public authorities across each of the sectors including local and central government, health, education and criminal justice.  In the majority of cases, to date, this has resulted in positive outcomes – those authorities having compliant schemes and policies, and we have not had to issue a compliance notice.

Monitoring for compliance with the race equality duties

The Commisison pro-actively monitors public authorities to ensure that they are complying with the requirements of the race equality duty. The Commission also works with other key partners to monitor how and if public bodies are complying the race equality duty.

Compliance of both general and specific duties is monitored:

• through examining samples of published information and reports required by race equality schemes
• through the work of inspection and audit bodies
• through evidence of possible failure to comply brought to the Commissions attention by individuals, groups, trade unions and various interested voluntary sector (and other public sector) groups
• through particular pieces of research conducted by or commissioned by the Commission

How will the inspectorates be involved?

The Commission is working with Inspectorate bodies across the public sector, and they are expected to make the Race Equality Duties an integral part of their work. They will continue to incorporate performance indicators and measures on race equality into their inspection frameworks, methodologies and thematic reviews.

The inspectorates are themselves subject to the Race Equality Duties, and are required, therefore, to show due regard for meeting the three strands of the General Duty in carrying out their relevant functions and policies. This is highly likely to include their audit or inspection procedures.

Audit and inspection

How do you judge whether race equality schemes are any good, and are fit for purpose?

Race equality schemes are public documents; anyone can check them. Public authorities are also required to publish the results of consultations, assessments, and monitoring, so anyone can see how well the authority is achieving what it set out to do.