Equality Impact Assessment including Fairer Scotland Duty

Within our Council Plan (2023-2028), we highlight that Local Government and partner agencies can sometimes work in a complicated legislative and strategic landscape. To allow us to increase opportunities for effective collaboration, and to also ensure that key local and national priorities are part of our decision-making process within South Ayrshire Council, a new cross-cutting Integrated Impact Assessment (IIA) has been developed.

Following a test phase, the new Integrated Impact Assessment (IIA) was approved for implementation by Cabinet in September 2024 and has now replaced the previous Equality Impact Assessment (incorporating Fairer Scotland Duty) process and paperwork.

South Ayrshire Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) will join South Ayrshire Council in adopting the new Integrated Impact Assessment. This reflects the HSCP's commitment to equalities as set out within the Integration Joint Board's Strategic Plan 2021-31.

What will it help us to do?

The IIA will encourage Services to explore where priorities overlap and converge and will help support a more joined up approach to tackling shared strategic challenges.

As part of the IIA, we are asking Services to consider the following areas:

The impact of the proposal on different communities and groups of people;
Whether we are meeting the legal requirements in terms of Public Sector Equality Duty and Human Rights;
Whether we are meeting the legal requirements of ensuring that we are actively considering how we can reduce inequalities of outcome caused by socio-economic disadvantage (the Fairer Scotland Duty);
Whether we are meeting the legal requirements of assessing whether there is an impact on children's rights United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC);
Whether there is an impact on sustainability, climate change and biodiversity;
Where there is an impact on the health and wellbeing of our communities;
South Ayrshire has the oldest demographic profile in Scotland therefore any planning needs to take into consideration any potential impact on older people;
How the proposal will support our rural communities;
Recognising the impact that trauma can have on people's lives and our steps to becoming a trauma informed organisation; and
Our commitment to The Promise that care experienced children and young people will grow up loved, safe and respected.

The IIA doesn't have to be completed for performance or financial update reports.

Integrated Impact Assessment Summary Reports are generated once an IIA has been completed, and this is submitted as part of panel papers going to Full Council or Cabinet meetings where a decision is required.

The Integrated Impact Assessment process is also used by the Transformation Board and South Ayrshire Community Planning Partnership.

2025/2026 IIA Summary Reports

2024/2025 IIA Summary Reports

Previous Paperwork (2021)