Equality and Human Rights

The Equality and Human Rights Commission works to eliminate discrimination, reduce inequality, protect human rights and to build good relations.

The Commission is a non-departmental public body established under the Equality Act 2006 and it opened on 1st October 2007 and combines the responsibilities and powers of the three previous equality commissions:

• The Commission for Racial Equality (CRE)
• The Disability Rights Commission (DRC), and
• The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC).

Each had responsibility for promoting racial, disability and sex equality in Britain.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission website(opens new window) (opens new tab) provides details of the duties and responsibilities of public authorities in Britain. It covers the statutory equality duties and the implications of the Human Rights Act 1998 for all public sector organisations.

Equality legislation overview

There has been a considerable body of legislation that concerns equality, particularly in the work place. Most recently there are two main acts which place specific equality duties upon the Council. Those acts are:

• The Equality Act 2010 (replaced 2006 Act and Disability Discrimination Act)
• The Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000.