Equalities, participation and human rights

Name: Amanda Tough 

Role: Participation and Equalities Team Manager  

Focus areas: I line manage the Participation and Equalities Team and lead on how participation and equalities are at the centre of the Care Inspectorate’s work. I am involved in various projects and groups including Children’s Rights Group, Safe Staffing, ensuring the voices of people are heard in our scrutiny, regulatory and quality improvement. I also support the Participation Advisor in developing the Inspection Volunteer scheme. 

What makes a good life for you: I value time with my family and two West Highland terriers, I also volunteer weekly at my local Brownies and Guides unit, as a leader. I love attending live music events and being outdoors. 

Name: Jacqui Duncan 

Role: Equalities Professional Adviser 

Focus areas: Reporting on equalities, leading on our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, advising on equalities to help further embed this into all our work, reporting on children's rights and supporting our employee networks.  

What makes a good life for you: I enjoy connecting with people and hearing different perspectives. I take great delight in learning something new. Quality time with the family is what I appreciate most. 

1. Inclusive practices

•   Ensure that all services are accessible and responsive to the diverse needs of people who experience care. 
•   Tailor services to respect cultural, ethnic, and religious backgrounds. 

2. Holistic care

•   Address the physical, emotional, social, and spiritual needs of individuals. 
•   Foster environments that support holistic wellbeing. 

3. Feedback and improvement 

•  Establish clear channels for people experiencing care to provide feedback. 
•  Actively use feedback to improve service delivery and address issues promptly. 

Stay informed about relevant policies and legislation that impact social care practices in Scotland.

• Equality Act 2010 
• Human Rights Act 1998 
• Human Rights Bill consultation 
• Social Care (Self-directed Support) (Scotland) Act 2013: Provides individuals with choice and control over their care. 
• Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act 2007: Aims to protect adults at risk from harm. 
• Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Act 2014: Integrates health and social care services to improve outcomes. 
• United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC): the 'gold standard' across the world for children's rights. It covers all aspects of a child's life and sets out the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights that all children everywhere are entitled to. 
• The Promise  

Some of the equality and human rights provisions and treaties that apply to the choice and control principle are:  

• Article 3 (freedom from inhuman and degrading treatment)  
• Article 5 (the right to liberty and security)   
• Article 8 (the right to family and private life) under the Human Rights Act.   
• Article 12 (equal recognition before the law)   
• Article 19 (the right to independent living) means protecting the rights of disabled people to live and participate in the community and giving them the same choices as non-disabled people.  
• The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) sets out a number of principles (such as dignity, autonomy and participation) for social care frameworks, as well as the design and delivery of services.  
• The public sector equality duty (giving consideration to preventing discrimination, promoting equality and encouraging good relations between people with different protected characteristics) and the reasonable adjustments provisions (meeting the needs of disabled people) under the Equality Act. 

Equip your team with practical tools and resources. 

Finding The Why (David Marshall’s) podcast 

Examples form meaningful connections 

Examples from tech guide  

Safe staffing

The Promise in practice

• Thematic review of self-directed support in Scotland (June 2019) 

• The Care Inspectorate’s role, purpose and learning during the Covid-19 pandemic (August 2020) 

• Review of findings of joint inspection of services for children and young people 2018-2020 (September 2020) 

• Delivering care at home and housing support services during the COVID-19 pandemic (September 2020) 

• Early Learning and Childcare Report: Our Role, Purpose and Learning during the Covid-19 pandemic (March 2021) 

• Triennial Review of Initial Case Reviews and Significant Case Reviews (2018-2021): Impact on Practice (June 2021) 

• The Care Inspectorate’s Scrutiny And Support Of Adult Social Care During The Covid-19 Pandemic (July 2021) 

• Community Justice Social Work: Throughcare Review (September 2021) 

• Justice overview report 2018-2021 (December 2021) 

• The joint inspection of adult support and protection interim overview report – Emerging key messages (May 2022) 

• Inquiry into adult carers’ experiences of social work and social care services (December 2022) 

• Triennial review of initial case reviews and significant case reviews for adults (2019-2022) (January 2023) 

• Joint review of diversion from prosecution (February 2023) 

• Position paper - Depriving and restricting liberty for children and young people in care home, school care and secure accommodation services (June 2023) 

• Early learning and childcare: Recovery play survey report (August 2023) 

• Joint Inspection of adult support and protection overview report (August 2023) 

• Care Home Report: Key Themes from Our Work Completed In Registered Care Home Services For Adults And Older People Between 1 April 2020 And 31 December 2022 (September 2023) 

• Secure care pathway review (September 2023)   

• Children’s Rights report April 2022 – March 2023 (October 2023) 

• Cross border thematic review (July 2024) 

We value your feedback to continuously improve the information on this page. Please share your thoughts, suggestions, and experiences with us. Get in touch with our team at XXXXX.