- Conference
- 2011 Local Government Service Group Conference
- Date
- 25 February 2011
- Decision
- Carried
Conference notes the devastating impact of the local government cuts on women, Black communities, disabled people and those on the lowest incomes. The lack of data on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people makes the impact on LGBT workers and communities less easy to quantify, but their impact on people’s lives is equally devastating. Conference further notes that LGBT related posts and activities are being seen by local government bodies as an easy target for cuts, with minimal fallout from the general public.
As evidence emerges of cuts to youth service provision, conference believes that, with the loss of specialist LGBT youth workers, young LGBT people are amongst those most likely to suffer, at the very time when those services are needed more than ever.
Further, conference reiterates its concern about the Tory-led government’s campaign to urge schools in England to leave local authority control. Amongst the raft of problems this can cause for school workers, there is clear evidence that the growth of ‘faith schools’ is bad news for LGBT equality. Successive surveys by Stonewall back up the reports of UNISON school staff members that there are higher levels of homophobic bullying in faith schools and in many cases little will to challenge this.
Conference calls on the Local Government Service Group Executive, working with the LGBT self-organised group, to:
1)Highlight attacks on LGBT related local government services, not allowing employers to hide behind lack of statistical data;
2)Promote the value of these services and the specialist knowledge of the LGBT workers who deliver them in local government campaigning against the cuts;
3)Continue to defend the vital importance of local government services that meet the needs of all, delivered by a workforce that reflects its community.