PETITION: ROLL OUT EDI PANELLISTS ACROSS ALL DIRECTORATES AND IMPLEMENT THE PATRICK VERNON RACE & DIVERSITY RECOMMENDATIONS IN FULL

Summary
We, the undersigned employees, residents and supporters of Lambeth Council, call on the Council to:

Reinstate and retain Equality Diversity Inclusion (EDI) Panelists as a mandatory element of recruitment processes where appropriate.
Roll out the EDI Panellist Programme across all Council directorates.
Implement in full all outstanding recommendations contained within the Patrick Vernon Race & Diversity Report (2019).
Conduct a transparent review of progress against the recommendations and publish the findings to staff.
Work in partnership with Trade Unions, Staff Forums, EDI Champions and EDI Panellist.
Why Race and Diversity Matters

The Patrick Vernon Report identified concerns about institutional racism, transparency, career progression and recruitment fairness. One key recommendation was that recruitment panels should be diverse and include Black Asian Minority Ethnic representation. The EDI Panellist Programme was developed to strengthen fairness, transparency and accountability in recruitment and promotion processes.

Removing or limiting EDI Panellist risks undermining progress made since the report was published and reducing staff confidence in recruitment and promotion processes.

We Therefore Call On Lambeth Council To:

Maintain and expand the EDI Panellist Programme across all directorates.
Ensure recruitment processes benefit from meaningful EDI oversight.
Honour commitments made following the Patrick Vernon Report (2019).
Publish progress against outstanding recommendations.
Provide regular updates to staff and trade unions.