1. Introduction

‘Respecting diversity, promoting equality and ensuring human rights will help to ensure that everyone using health and social care services receives safe and good quality care.’ (Care Quality Commission)

Everyone should be treated equally and be given the same standard of service when a provider works with adults with care and support needs and their human rights (see Section 4, Human Rights) are respected.

2. Equality

The Equality Act 2010 is the legislation that makes sure that everyone receives an equal service and that no one is discriminated against.

The Act talks about ‘protected characteristics. These are:

  • age;
  • disability;
  • gender reassignment (people who are changing their sex);
  • race;
  • religion or belief;
  • sex;
  • sexual orientation;
  • marriage and civil partnership;
  • pregnancy and maternity.

A provider service’s commitment to equality and diversity means that every person it supports will be treated equally and without discrimination, whatever their ‘protected characterisitics’.

The service is also committed to protecting people’s human rights.

3. The Service’s Commitment

The service and its staff should:

  • respect the ethnic, cultural and religious ways of people who use the service and make sure they are able to practice them;
  • reassure people that their diverse backgrounds improve the quality of experience of everyone who lives and / or works in the service;
  • protect people’s human rights – treat people who use the service, and their family and friends, fairly and with respect and dignity;
  • accept adults who use the service as individuals in their own right;
  • support them to express their individuality and to follow their preferred lifestyle, also help them celebrate events, anniversaries or festivals which are important to them such as Christmas, Diwali or Eid for example;
  • show positive leadership and have resources that actively demonstrate a commitment to equality and diversity;
  • make sure the culture of the service reflects these values and principles;
  • expect all staff to work to equality and diversity principles and policies and to behave at all times in ways that do not discriminate against anyone (people who use the service, their family and friends, other visitors and members of staff);
  • provide training, supervision and support to staff;
  • having a code of conduct that makes any form of discriminatory behaviour unacceptable.

While the main responsibility for providing equal opportunity lies with senior managers, all staff have responsibilities to make sure everyone is treated equally and their human rights respected.

This includes:

  • staff must not be verbally abusive or intimidate other employees on any grounds, including those of disability, race, sex or sexual orientation or other ‘proteced characteristics’;
  • staff must not victimise anyone on the grounds that they have made a complaint or provided information about discrimination or harassment.

Any employee who believes that they are being discriminated against, harassed, victimised, bullied, intimidated or threatened has valid grounds for taking out a grievance through the employees grievance procedure.

4. Human Rights

The Human Rights Act 1998 states the basic rights and freedoms to which everyone in the UK is entitled. These include the:

  • right to life;
  • freedom from torture and inhuman or degrading treatment;
  • freedom from slavery and forced labour;
  • right to liberty and security;
  • right to a fair trial;
  • respect for private and family life, home and correspondence;
  • freedom of thought, belief and religion;
  • freedom of expression;
  • freedom of assembly and association;
  • right to marry and start a family;
  • protection from discrimination in respect of these rights and freedoms;
  • right to education.

Human rights law applies to public bodies such as councils and the NHS and other organisations, including services which provide care and support.

The Human Rights Act can be breached (broken) by services by:

  • inflicting (make a person suffer) physical abuse or allow a person to be neglected;
  • intervening in a person’s life’s in a way which is illegal and disproportionate;
  • fail to intervene to protect a person from being abused or neglected by someone.
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