Anti-racism statement

 

The Walton Centre formally outlined our commitment to becoming an anti-racist organisation when we published our initial Anti-Racism Statement in February 2024.

In recent months, racist attacks, hatred and violence have dominated the media, both locally and across the country. We know that this small minority do not speak for the vast majority of our community and in light of this, we felt it was important to restate our position.

The Walton Centre has a zero tolerance to racism and other actions which compromise freedom and equality; discrimination in any form, in any setting, is unacceptable.

The Trust is committed to equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice, both in the provision of services and in our role as an employer, including the removal of potential barriers and the fostering of relationships. This is demonstrated within the core Walton Centre values as well as our practice. The Trust believes that all people have the right to be treated with dignity and respect and is committed to the elimination of unfair and unlawful discriminatory practices.

We recognise that racism goes beyond conscious or open hostility towards individuals or communities because of their culture, colour, nationality, race or ethnic background. Racism can also manifest through micro-aggressions which can be subtle and often unconscious. Impact outweighs intent and whilst harm may not be intended, the impact can be lasting and damaging. To truly tackle racism, we need to understand our personal contribution.

Anti-racism is an active and conscious effort to work against all aspects of overt and systemic racism. The Trust have committed to actively becoming anti-racist through the North West BAME Anti-racist Framework.

We are committed to delivering the following actions:

• Equality, Diversity and Inclusion objectives which reflect our commitment to anti-racism.
• Executive and Non-Executive Director roles with clear commitment to anti-racism and annual objectives set to advance work in this regard.
• Commitment to understanding and then eliminating ethnicity pay gaps.
• An Anti-Racism Staff Network which is fully supported, has NED sponsorship and visibility at Board.
• Through the provision of outstanding Health & Wellbeing support, continue to address health inequalities within our workforce.
• Continue to deliver Building a Culture of Conscious Inclusion Training to staff and as part of our mandatory line management training to ensure conscious effort is taken by all staff to be inclusive and create a culture of belonging.
• We will trailblaze working in partnership with the population of Liverpool (as part of our community) through Liverpool Citizens*. This will include extensive engagement, breaking down barriers and improving employment opportunities for residents in the areas with the highest levels of deprivation.

*Liverpool Citizens is a non-partisan alliance of Groups from across the city including faith, education, academia, housing, health, community, voluntary and charities.