National Initiatives Minority Communities Achievement Service

The Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 Summary of the Legal Requirements 

Introduction:

Schools can refer to this section to clarify their general and specific duties. The statutory order referred to relates to the order made by the Home Secretary, which came into force on the 3rd December 2001. Full details of this order can be found by following this link to Clusterweb:

• http://www.clusterweb.org.uk/docs/TheLegalFramework.doc

The General Duty:

The Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 places a general duty on all schools (and public authorities) to:

• Eliminate unlawful racial discrimination
• Promote equality of opportunity
• Promote good relations between people of different racial groups

The Specific Duties:

The Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 places a duty on schools to:

1. Prepare, maintain and fulfil a written statement of their race equality policy. The race equality policy could be part of another policy, for example Equal Opportunities, but in order to meet the duty the policy should be clearly identifiable and easily available. The Race Equality Policy should have been in place by 31 May 2002.
2. Assess the impact of its policies, including the race equality policy, on pupils, staff and parents of different racial groups.
3. Monitor the impact on pupils, staff and parents the operation of its policies. (The statutory order sets out that schools should publish annually the results of its monitoring).

For both (2) and (3) the Act makes particular reference to the assessment and monitoring of the attainment levels of pupils.

The stautory order sets out that schools should have in place arrangements for fulfilling these duties as soon as is reasonably practicable.

Further Information:

A lot of background information and guidance is available on developing race equality policies and practices. This list indicates some initial routes for investigation, and top-level website links where possible. Some key documents are noted, but there are many other documents of relevance and use.

Commission for Racial Policy
www.cre.gov.uk
Statutory code of practice on the duty to promote race equality: A guide for schools Commission for Racial Equality, 2001
Learning for All - Standards for Racial Equality in Schools Commission for Racial Equality, 2000

DCSF
www.dfes.gov.uk
Making the Difference: Teaching and Learning Strategies in Successful Multi-Ethnic Schools - DfEE, 1998
Removing the Barriers: Raising Achievement Levels for Minority Ethnic Pupils: Key Points for Schools - DfEE, 2000
Removing the Barriers: Raising Achievement Levels for Minority Ethnic Pupils
Exploring Good Practice (Includes Video) - DCSF 001/2002 January 2002
Working Towards Inclusive Education: Aspects of Good Practice for Gypsy Traveller Pupils - DfEE Research Report RR238, 2000

OfSTED
www.ofsted.gov.uk
Race Equality in Education: Good Practice in Schools and LEAs (2005)
Evaluating Education Inclusion - Guidance for Inspectors and Schools (2000), Ref: HMI 235
Raising the Attainment of Minority Ethnic Pupil: School and LEA Responses (1999)

SureStart
www.surestart.gov.uk 
Promoting Race Equality in Early Years

The Stationary Office
The Stephen Lawrence Inquiry by Sir William Macpherson of Cluny (February 1999)