The judgement by Lord Justice Moses in the case of Southall Black Sisters and London Borough of Ealing was published on 29 July 2008.
Southall Black Sisters (SBS) successfully challenged Ealing Council’s decision to end funding SBS services to Asian and Afro-Caribbean women experiencing domestic violence. Lord Justice Moses’ ruling provides helpful clarification for local authorities, particularly in relation to the timing and importance of race equality impact assessments and the interpretation of measures required for community cohesion.
The ruling stresses the need to carry out an equality impact assessment before formulating policies and states that ‘[t]here is no dichotomy between the promotion of equality and cohesion and the provision of specialist services to an ethnic minority’.
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