This toolkit sets out the ways in which CSOs can identify and challenge racially discriminatory criminal justice policies using the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED). The toolkit will support organisations to feel confident in working with lawyers and how to take preliminary steps prior to a legal challenge. By building the confidence of CSOs in challenging public bodies through this practical toolkit, we hope this will increase transparency and accountability of public bodies, ultimately improving adherence to the PSED and reducing racial inequalities in the criminal justice system.
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What is in the toolkit?
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The toolkit is made up of five individual guides, which help demystify the language and processes that CSOs may face when challenging a public bodies’ lack of adherence to the PSED.
The toolkit is made up of five individual guides, which help demystify the language and processes that CSOs may face when challenging a public bodies’ lack of adherence to the PSED.
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The guides also contain case studies of recent successes where CSOs have challenged criminal justice policies based on a public bodies’ lack of adherence to the PSED. Examples include the historical case that led to the removal of the Metropolitan Police’s Gangs Matrix database that targeted young Black men, led by UNJUST and Liberty and the successful challenge of South Wales Police’s facial recognition technology on the basis that there was a risk that the software might indirectly discriminate against individuals on the basis of race and sex.