Fair from the start

Who It's For

Managers, HR professionals and leaders working in councils, health, housing or voluntary organisations

Overview

For public bodies, equality is a positive duty in every decision. This first half of Fair by design separates equality, equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging, drawing on Roberson, Shore, Ely and Thomas and the Ford Dagenham sewing machinists' strike. It sets out the Equality Act 2010, the Public Sector Equality Duty with the Brown principles and the Welsh socio-economic duty, then the law in motion to November 2026, including the Employment Rights Act 2025. The evidence on bias in people decisions follows, then family rights, flexible working and harassment prevention. It concludes with disability: the social model named by Mike Oliver, Tom Shakespeare's critique, reasonable adjustments and the employment gap.

Aims

Put simply, the aim is to help managers and leaders make fairness a way of deciding rather than a document: spotting legal risk early, showing due regard while options are still open, designing people processes that rest on evidence rather than good intentions, and removing the barriers disabled colleagues meet.

In summary, you will be able to:

1. 1Distinguish direct and indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation, and plan positive action that stays lawful.
2. 2Explain the three aims of the general equality duty and the Brown principles, and use them to show due regard while options are still open.
3. 3Apply the social model question of what gets in the way, and hold an adjustment conversation that removes barriers quickly and is reviewed over time.

What you'll develop

Across this Explore, you will develop the ability to:

1. 1Distinguish equality, equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging, and explain why each can be achieved without the others.
2. 2Identify the nine protected characteristics and explain why the Act protects everyone rather than particular groups.
3. 3Explain the three aims of the general duty in section 149 and the Brown principles that show whether due regard was given.
4. 4Explain the preventative duty on sexual harassment and what changed on 30 October 2026, including liability for harassment by third parties.
5. 5Identify the main statutory family and caring leave rights and explain the protections that apply during pregnancy and maternity.
6. 6Distinguish direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, discrimination arising from disability, harassment and victimisation, and explain when each can or cannot be justified.
7. 7Distinguish impairment from disability and compare the medical, social, biopsychosocial and human rights models, recognising which one a conversation is using.
8. 8Explain the Equality Act definition of disability, discrimination arising from disability, the knowledge test and the duty to make reasonable adjustments.