What we do

We come up with ideas to make society fairer and more equitable.

Since brap was formed 14 years ago, we’ve been at the forefront of formulating challenging but influential messages:

• we were among the first to argue that many aspects of people’s identity like ‘race’ and ‘gender’ are social constructs and, as such, equalities thinking needs to move away from traditional, siloed approaches that reinforce artificial divisions
• we highlighted the inefficacy of equality initiatives that only deal with the symptoms – and not the causes – of disadvantage and discrimination. brap has long argued for the need to look at ‘issues’ rather than characteristics supposedly belonging to particular groups. We see this as a means of capturing expertise on particular issues (health, education, policing, for instance) rather than simply ensuring that this or that minority is represented at the table.
• we were one of the first organisations in the country to show the potential for human rights to improve services and ensure people of all backgrounds receive their entitlements
• we were among the first to argue that merely consulting with community leaders – rather than communities – ignores the diversity within diversity. brap is at the forefront of developing approaches to consultation that emphasise knowledge, experience and expertise over membership of a particular group.

But we know that ‘talking the talk’ is not enough, so we have developed a portfolio of services and activities that aim to create a fairer society. They fall into four broad areas:

Learning
For society to be fairer, people have to be enthused and motivated to make the right equality choices in their day-to-day roles. We work with professionals to help them identify what equality means for them practically and – hopefully – make the right choices for everyone.

Research
In a fair society, decisions, policies, and strategies will be based on sound evidence and an understanding of the issues that perpetuate disadvantage. We undertake research that helps people develop new thinking and new approaches to addressing unfairness and inequality.

Communities and enterprise
For society to be fairer, people have to be empowered to create change for themselves. We give individuals, charities, and social businesses the tools to deliver fairer services, get involved in decision making, and change their communities for the better.

Service design
In a fairer society, organisations would understand how to build the entitlements we all have as individuals into the way they design and deliver services. We help organisations improve performance and deliver better outcomes for everyone in light of these considerations.