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DIVERSITY IN THE PUBLIC APPOINTMENTS PROCESS IN SCOTLAND

SECTION ONE PUBLIC APPOINTMENTS IN SCOTLAND

1.1 This report presents the findings of research which was commissioned by the Scottish Executive and carried out by Reid-Howie Associates from January - June 2003, in order to:

"identify why the current public appointments process fails to produce a diverse range of candidates for public appointments and to provide recommendations for improving the process so that it does produce a more diverse range of candidates".

1.2 The study focused upon a number of recent public appointments rounds in Scotland, and upon the process more generally, exploring the views of all of those with a key role in public appointments and equalities issues in Scotland.

1.3 A large amount of information was gathered, and the report is in a number of sections. This section provides a brief introduction to the context in which the work took place, while the main sections of the report present the key findings at each stage, in terms of:

• The process followed and overall perceptions of equality/diversity.
• Perceived barriers to participation by under-represented groups and examples of developing good practice.
• Suggested developments for the future.

1.4 The final section draws together a series of recommendations, as well as providing a draft good practice "checklist" which can provide the basis of a tool to assist with the promotion of diversity in public appointments in the future. Supporting information is provided in two Annexes.

INTRODUCTION

1.5 The promotion of diversity in public appointments means taking steps to ensure that the boards of Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) reflect more fully the "social and cultural mix" in Scotland. This involves recognising that there are many different groups in society and valuing their range of interests, skills, talents and needs.

1.6 Currently, a range of factors make it less likely that some groups will be able to participate effectively in public life, leading to their under-representation in public appointments. The overall aim of this study was to identify some of these factors and to suggest ways to increase participation.

1.7 The research began from the starting point that the promotion of diversity is an equalities issue. In order to promote the desired outcome (greater diversity) there is a need to ensure equality of access to all aspects of the public appointments process. For this reason, reference is made in the report both to the need to promote diversity and to the need to promote equality. The remainder of this section considers the Scottish Executive's general commitment to equality and recent developments in the public appointments process. (Further details of these developments are provided in Annex 1.)

THE PROMOTION OF EQUALITY

1.8 The Scottish Executive is committed to the promotion of social inclusion and equality in all aspects of its functioning, the principles of which are now being reflected in policy and practice. The Executive produced an "Equality Strategy" in 2000 ¹, in which the commitment to equality was stressed, and a dedicated Equality Unit takes this forward. This has been identified as a cross-cutting issue and the responsibility of all departments, and progress is detailed regularly ².

1.9 The Equality Strategy recognises that some groups still face a number of barriers, with the failure of many structures and institutions to take account of their needs and experiences. This contributes to the following constraints, which are likely to impact upon their participation in public appointments:

• Restricted access to employment, goods, services and resources.
• Under-representation in senior positions in work, professions and business.
• Under-representation in political and public life.
• Experience of direct, indirect and institutional discrimination.

There is therefore, a need for continuing work to increase access by under-represented groups to the policy process, to services, to employment and to public appointments.

1.10 Both the Equality Strategy and the 2003 progress report emphasise a specific commitment to promoting diversity in public appointments, for example:

"Appointees have traditionally come from a narrow range of backgrounds. The Scottish Executive is committed to ensuring that in future the membership of public bodies will more readily reflect Scottish society." (Equality Annual Report)

1.11 The Scottish Executive explored the nature of under-representation in more detail in 2002, examining the types of information collected on public appointments in the previous year, and this work identified that:

• There was a considerable gender imbalance in public appointments (with the exception of Children's Panels and Children's Panel Advisory Committees).
• Disabled people were under-represented in public appointments.
• People from minority ethnic groups were reasonably well-represented on the boards of NDPBs (in terms of an overall comparison of proportionality to the identified composition of the population), but under-represented at Chairperson level, and representation may be concentrated in specific sectors.
• The majority of appointees were over the age of 45.
• There was a lack of applications from under-represented groups.

Public appointments - current policy issues

1.12 The need to address this under-representation has also been recognised in current public appointments policy ³. The Executive is developing work to strengthen accountability and openness, modernise systems for board members and encourage under-represented groups to apply for public appointments. The report "A Guide to Public Bodies in Scotland" stresses the need to address diversity, as follows:

"We want to be open about the people who are appointed to serve on the boards of public bodies and to encourage a broader cross-section of people to apply."

1.13 At a UK government level, the Cabinet Office ⁴ also suggests that:

"Improving diversity in public appointments is a Ministerial and Government priority."

1.14 A major recent policy development which will impact upon this in Scotland is the Public Appointments and Public Bodies etc. (Scotland) Act 2003, which provides for the establishment of a Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland (CPAS). They will have a similar role and responsibilities to those of the UK Commissioner, and their functions will include to:

"promote diversity, by drawing up a diversity strategy for public appointments in collaboration with the Executive".

1.15 There have also been a number of other recent and planned developments in the Scottish Executive and in the work of the Public Appointments Team which will impact upon the promotion of diversity and these are detailed in Annex 1.

1.16 All of these actions are likely to inform the improvement of the existing process and the development of a diversity strategy to be led by CPAS. This research set out to assist with the improvement of the process and the development of the strategy, by identifying perceptions of the best means of promoting good practice in the public appointments process. Before presenting these findings, however, the nature of the process is outlined briefly below, in order to set the issues in their context ⁵.

THE NATURE OF THE PUBLIC APPOINTMENTS PROCESS IN SCOTLAND

1.17 Public appointments are appointments to the boards of public bodies (NDPBs). NDPBs are organisations which have a role in the processes of national Government, but are not a Government department or part of one. All public bodies are attached to a sponsoring Government department and operate at arm's length from Ministers.

Involvement in the process

1.18 The public appointments process is undertaken by Scottish Executive sponsor teams who manage this on behalf of the Minister, providing administrative support, making arrangements and providing specialist advice. A senior member of staff in the relevant Scottish Executive division also generally chairs the interview panel ⁶.

1.19 The teams have the support of a central Public Appointments Team, which is responsible for the development and monitoring of public appointments policy, and for observing the implementation of the Commissioner's Code of Practice (including the promotion of diversity).

1.20 An Independent Assessor is also involved in the process, providing an objective check on practice. A representative of the NDPB also generally takes part, providing input relating to the specific needs of the organisation. The relevant Minister has final responsibility for the appointment. All of these roles are described in more detail in Annex 1.

Stages of the process

1.21 The public appointments process follows recruitment practices similar to those used for the appointment of staff, involving the following stages:

• Preparation of role and person specifications and provision of supporting information for a post.
• Advertising and/or other publicity.
• Application and selection (generally through shortlisting and a face to face interview or "conversation with a purpose").
• Identification of candidate(s) for recommendation to the relevant Minister for appointment.

Guidance on practice

1.22 The whole process is overseen by a Commissioner for Public Appointments, and follows a Code of Practice ⁷ which sets out the regulatory framework. The Code specifies that:

"… principles of equal opportunity and diversity must be inherent within the appointments process. Care must be taken, at every stage, not to discriminate on the grounds of gender, race, age, disability, religion, marital status, sexual orientation or community background."

1.23 The Code also identifies the need for positive action, within the law, to promote diversity, as follows:

"Departments should take positive action wherever possible to attract suitable candidates from all sections of society, and this, in turn, should lead to wider representation on public bodies."

1.24 The Code provides the overall framework for the process, and is supplemented with guidance from the Cabinet Office ⁸ and from the Public Appointments Team in the Scottish Executive. These documents are also clear about the need to promote equality/diversity and provide detailed information about the process.

1.25 It is important to stress from the outset that this research, and the recommendations made, recognise the difference between positive discrimination and positive action. Positive discrimination involves the provision of advantage purely on the basis of belonging to a particular group and is explicitly ruled out in the Commissioner's Code of Practice. Positive action recognises the need to address existing barriers in processes and practices, many of which are not intended to exclude particular groups, but are a function of a failure of the process to recognise their experiences and needs. The development of a diversity strategy involves the identification of appropriate positive action.

THE NATURE OF THE RESEARCH

1.26 It was recognised from the start that a number of complementary research techniques would be required in order to gather the views of all of those involved in public appointments and to identify the key diversity issues. The methods which were adopted involved:

• The completion of detailed case studies of practice in four public appointments rounds which took place in the year to December 2002.
• A postal survey of a further 16 public appointments rounds during the same period.
• A postal survey of the more general views of the remaining Independent Assessors, Scottish Executive sponsor teams and NDPBs.
• Collection of the views of key equalities organisations and other relevant organisations with a clear interest in the public appointments process.
• Interviews with key staff from the Scottish Executive Equality Unit and the Public Appointments Team.
• Identification of good practice information from other sources.

1.27 This was a qualitative study of the process and the presentation of the results reflects this. Full details of the methodology are provided in Annex 2.

1.28 The research generated a large amount of detailed information relating to the public appointments process and this is discussed in the remaining sections of this report. Sections 2-4 explore different stages of the process, before examining the wider contextual issues in Section 5 and presenting the conclusions and recommendations in Section 6.

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