Hi Mannie

Do the services of external examiners count as being 'outsourced' -
mostly they are retained on a one-off fee basis for moderation duties
during an academic year, and appointments are 3-5 years.
Alternatively, do they count as staff under the employment duties?

In any event, their function is highly relevant to race equality and
there could be far-reaching and practical implications for HEIs around
recruitment, training and support for external examiners. Also, the
system functions or is intended to function as one which helps assure
peer standards are maintained and fairness exercised in examining
processes.

Has the ECU an guidance on external examiners' issues?

Regards

Virginia

On Fri, 18 Oct 2002 11:49:26 +0100 Emmanuell Kusemamuriwo
<[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Dear Colleagues,
>
> I think it's very helpful of Naseem to offer JMU's Statement for
> embedding
> race equality and EO in general, into their procurement requirements.
> However, while this is a good entry into the requirements, I do not feel
> that it would take an institution far enough in order to be at the
> minimum
> level of institutional RRAA proofed response, that is relative to the
> CRE's
> Statutory Code Of Practice advice.
>
> By this I mean that Procurement or any other outsourcing or partnership
> activity that an HEI undertakes, will need to be treated just like any
> other
> institutional function under the statutory requirements of the RRAA
> General
> and Specific Duties. This will need to be done according to what the
> Code of
> Practice is saying about what having "due regard" to the RRAA's
> statutory
> requirements in all their race equality relevant functions (refer to
> page
> 11, paragraph 1.10 of the Statutory Code).
>
> This therefore means that there are certain pertinent questions that an
> HEI
> must answer about all its functions, in order to ensure that it is
> implementing its Race Equality Policy and linked Action Plan,
> effectively.
> These questions are as follows: (please refer to pages 13 to 18 of the
> Code,
> paragraphs 2.8 to 3.17.)
>
> a)      Is this an institutional function? (Clearly any procurement,
> outsourcing and contracted out activities are)
>
> b)      If it is, is there any race equality relevance in this function?
> (Any function that involves people i.e. staff and/or students is likely
> to
> be)
>
> c)      If the function is deemed race equality relevant, then the
> appropriate Specific Duties will need to be incorporated into the
> function
> and the contractual requirements (page 13, paragraph 2.9)will need to
> reflect this in order for the institution to ensure that delivery within
> this function will be anti-racist and therefore will not be unlawfully
> discriminatory.
>
> d)      This will obviously have certain implications for both the
> procuring
> institution and the delivering organisation in that the staff who are
> involved will need to have some support and even training in order for
> them
> to implement the function appropriately. There will also be monitoring,
> assessment, reviewing and reporting requirements on the function, as the
> Specific Duties require.
>
> As you can see, the statutory requirements, responsibilities,
> accountabilities and liabilities (both vicarious and otherwise)are far
> too
> complex to be adequately acknowledged and reasonably dispensed with, if
> institutions only go as far as the JMU "Statement". We will need to go
> further in order to be at the minimum standard of evidence based and
> pro-active institutional race equality proofed practice that is now
> expected
> of us, by the RRAA. Please also refer to the attached advice which some
> of
> you are already aware of because I have sent it out before.
>
> While appreciating that the issue of Procurement seems to be posing
> numerous
> challenges for colleagues, my advice would be: Lets have a can-do
> attitude
> and do whatever best we can under the circumstances, by making it part
> of
> our Action Plan objectives or tasks and then subject it to all the
> institutional demands of communication and consultation, define
> responsibilities and therefore needs of staff for support and training
> under
> the current demands, and then begin to work towards institutional
> compliance
> with the statutory requirements of the RRAA General and Specific
> Duties. At
> least we will then be demonstrating our serious commitment to ensuring
> that
> this particular institutional function is working to mainstream anti
> discriminatory practice.
>
> Incidentally, we will need to apply the same race equality proofing
> exercise
> to all new and reviewed contracts.
>
> Any issues that arise from this or any other RRAA or Equality and
> Diversity
> issues, are most welcome.
>
> I look forward to hearing from you soon.
>
> Mannie Kusemamuriwo
> Policy Adviser: Ethnicity & Cultural Diversity
> Equality Challenge Unit
> 3rd Floor, 4 Tavistock Place
> London  WC1H 9RA
>
> Tel 020 7520 7063
> Fax 020 7520 7069
> [log in to unmask]
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Anwar Naseem [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: 17 October 2002 18:30
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: procurement/ contract compliance
>
>
> Dear All
>
> Please find attached information of JMU's approach to embedding good
> practice (re: Race Relations Amendment Act and equal opps in general) in
> procurement procedures .
>
> I would be grateful for your comments on how useful the JMU checklist
> is and
> whether you also make any use of this in your institutions.
>
> Regards,
>
> Naseem
>
> ********************************************
> Naseem Anwar
> Senior Adviser Equality & Policy Development
> Liverpool John Moores University
> The Mews
> 7 Roscoe Street
> Liverpool
> L1 2SX. UK
> Tel: (00 44)0151-231 3188
> Email: [log in to unmask]
>
> website:
> http://cwis.livjm.ac.uk/employ/equalOpportunities/welcome.html
>
> latest publication:
> http://www.chelt.ac.uk/gdn/disabil/mobility/index.htm
>
> learn to sign your name:
> www.bda.org.uk
>
>
>
>
>
>

----------------------
Virginia M Wainwright
Director of Equality and Diversity
King's College London
James Clerk Maxwell Building
57 Waterloo Road
London SE1 8WA
020 7848 3399
[log in to unmask]