Question 1 · Law, Ethics & Human Factors · Easy
An ambulance trust is writing its equality policy and wishes to list the characteristics protected by section 4 of the Equality Act 2010. Which of the following is NOT one of the nine protected characteristics?
- AGender reassignment
- BSexual orientation
- CPregnancy and maternity
- DSocioeconomic status
- EReligion or belief
Show answer
Answer: D
Socioeconomic status
Section 4 of the Equality Act 2010 lists nine protected characteristics: age; disability; gender reassignment; marriage and civil partnership; pregnancy and maternity; race; religion or belief; sex; and sexual orientation. Socioeconomic status, including homelessness or deprivation, is not one of them, however relevant it is to health inequality. For an ambulance trust the list matters because the public sector equality duty in section 149 requires due regard to eliminating discrimination, advancing equality of opportunity and fostering good relations between people who share a relevant protected characteristic and those who do not. HCPC standard 1.5 requires registrants to treat people fairly and to be aware of the impact of their own values, biases and beliefs.
Where this comes from
- Equality Act 2010, section 4“The following characteristics are protected characteristics”Open at this sentence
- Equality Act 2010, section 149(1)“A public authority must, in the exercise of its functions, have due regard”Open at this section
- Equality Act 2010, section 149(7)“The relevant protected characteristics are”Open at this section
- HCPC Standards of conduct, performance and ethicsHealth and Care Professions Council, effective 1 September 2024·Standard 1.5 — challenge discrimination“You must treat people fairly and be aware of the potential impact”Open PDF at page 10