This is the standard Croquet Association Equality Policy
The Croquet Association (CA), as the National Governing Body for Croquet, aims to grow the sport so that it is inclusive asnd accessible to all. Our culture and practices welcome diversity when reaching new participants in our sport. We will continue to tackle all forms of discrimination and to promote equality of opportunity. We are proud of our sport’s long-established, high standards of integrity and fair play and we will strive to maintain them. We will ensure that the following Equality Policy (EP) is understood by all our members so that everyone involved in croquet contributes to making it an inclusive sport which embraces diversity.
Purpose of this Policy
The CA’s Federations, Clubs and individual members must comply with the Equality Act 2010 which covers discrimination and equality issues. Furthermore, this EP is a matter of good governance: it commits the CA to tackling any form of discrimination or other unfair treatment within Croquet so that no-one feels precluded from participating fully in our sport.
Discrimination
The Equality Act protects people from discrimination on 9 grounds. These are set out in the Appendix below together with a description of the various forms of discrimination defined in the legislation. The CA recognises its legal obligation not to discriminate and it will abide by, and require all its members to abide by, all relevant existing legislation.
Ethics
Integrity is an important aspect of our sport: at National level we have a duty to ensure that the laws and rules of our games are applied rigorously and uniformly; and at personal level all players have a moral obligation to play by them. We are fortunate that croquet players, who often act as their own referee, possess high standards of sportsmanship and fair play. Nevertheless, in common with sports generally, the line between gamesmanship and legality may sometimes become blurred resulting in pressures on our traditional standards. We will seek to mitigate these pressures and, to ensure we uphold players’ standards of behaviour, etiquette and good manners, the CA is committed to continuous review of its Laws, Rules and Regulations.
Complaints and Disciplinary Procedure
The CA regards any discrimination, harassment, bullying or victimisation, as described in the Appendix to this EP, to be conduct which is injurious to the character or interests of the Association. Any complaint relating to such conduct will be taken seriously and dealt with under the Association’s Disciplinary and Appeal Procedures set out in Clause 8 and Appendix 1 of the Constitution.
Responsibilities and Implementation
The CA Council is accountable for the monitoring of; the compliance with; and the maintenance of this policy. The Chairman of Council is accountable for any necessary review of the EP; for its communication to all member Clubs and Member Federations; and its wider publication on the Association’s website. The Hon. Secretary will be responsible for the day-to-day operation of EP; the complaints and disciplinary procedures; and maintaining a record of all incidents.
Appendix
Legal Background
There is a raft of legislation covering discrimination and equality issues and most of this was brought together in the Equality Act 2010. This protects people from discrimination on the grounds of:
- race
- gender
- sexual orientation
- disability (or something connected with their disability)
- religion or belief
- being a transsexual person
- age
- pregnancy or maternity
- being married or in a civil partnership
Discrimination, Harassment and Victimisation
Discrimination can take the following forms:
- Direct Discrimination – treating someone less favourably than you would treat others in the same circumstances;
- Indirect Discrimination – imposing requirements or conditions that appear to apply equally to all but which, in practice, disadvantage certain members or sections of the membership. Such requirements or conditions are lawful only if they can be objectively justified;
- Harassment – inappropriate actions, behaviour, comments or physical contact that is objectionable or causes offence to the recipient. Harassment is unlawful if directed towards people because of their sex, gender, race, ethnic origin, nationality, age, sexual orientation, disability or religion/belief, or if conduct is of a sexual nature. The CA is committed to ensuring that its employees, officers, members and member clubs are able to conduct their activities free from harassment or intimidation;
- Bullying – is a form of personal harassment. It is the misuse of power, or position, to persistently unjustifiably criticise, humiliate and/or undermine an individual’s confidence; and
- Victimisation – is when someone is treated less favourably than others because it is known or suspected that he or she has taken action against the CA under the discrimination legislation or provided information about discrimination, harassment or inappropriate behaviour.