Meeting the Needs of Protected Groups Training
Practical training on meeting the needs of protected groups, identifying barriers, applying the Equality Act 2010 and improving inclusive workplace, education and public service practice.
Practical training on meeting the needs of protected groups, identifying barriers, applying the Equality Act 2010 and improving inclusive workplace, education and public service practice.
This practical course helps organisations understand how people with different protected characteristics may experience barriers in employment, education and public services. Delegates explore the Equality Act 2010, inclusive decision-making, accessibility and practical ways of responding to different needs without relying on assumptions or stereotypes.
The Equality Act 2010 identifies nine protected characteristics: age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.
Understanding these characteristics is important, but effective inclusion requires more than knowing a list. Organisations also need to understand how policies, environments, communication and everyday decisions can create different experiences for different people.
Treating everybody identically does not necessarily produce fair outcomes.
A standard process may unintentionally disadvantage some people because of disability, religious requirements, pregnancy, caring circumstances or other relevant factors.
Delegates explore how organisations can maintain fair standards while identifying and removing unnecessary barriers.
People who share a protected characteristic are not a homogeneous group. Good inclusive practice starts by understanding the individual, the situation and the barrier rather than assuming that everybody from a particular group has the same needs or experiences.
Barriers are not always deliberate. They can be created by physical environments, digital systems, eligibility rules, working arrangements, communication methods, recruitment processes or organisational culture.
Delegates learn to examine the interaction between an individual and the organisation rather than automatically viewing the person as the problem.
The course is suitable for managers, HR professionals, teachers, lecturers, support staff, public-service professionals, customer-facing teams, policy makers and anyone responsible for ensuring fair access to employment, learning or services.
Identify barriers, assumptions and practices that may disadvantage people.
Understand relevant circumstances and consider proportionate, fair responses.
Remove unnecessary barriers and improve access, participation and inclusion.
The course provides a practical overview of the Equality Act rather than simply presenting legal terminology.
Delegates consider direct and indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation, alongside disability-specific provisions such as discrimination arising from disability and the duty to make reasonable adjustments.
Where relevant, public-sector organisations can also explore the Public Sector Equality Duty and how equality considerations should inform decision-making.
Protected characteristics provide an important legal framework, but they do not tell us everything about an individual's circumstances.
People may have several intersecting identities and may experience barriers differently depending on their role, environment and circumstances.
The course therefore combines knowledge of the legal framework with person-centred and evidence-based practice.
Disabled people can experience barriers created by physical environments, working arrangements, communication methods, technology and organisational processes.
Delegates explore the Equality Act duty to make reasonable adjustments and the importance of discussing individual barriers rather than assuming that people with the same impairment will require the same solution.
Communication should enable people to participate rather than creating additional barriers.
Depending on the context, this may involve accessible formats, plain language, communication support, interpretation, additional processing time or reviewing how information is provided.
Delegates consider how working arrangements, dress requirements, facilities, food, events and scheduling may affect people with different religions or beliefs.
The course encourages proportionate decision-making rather than assuming that every request must automatically be accepted or rejected.
Organisations may need to consider racial discrimination, stereotyping, language, cultural assumptions and unequal access to opportunities or services.
Delegates explore how to respond to individual needs while avoiding the assumption that people from the same racial, ethnic or cultural background share identical experiences.
Policies and practices can affect women and men differently, and pregnancy and maternity have specific protection within equality law.
Delegates consider workplace, education and service-delivery situations in which apparently neutral arrangements may create disadvantage.
The course considers respectful communication, privacy, dignity, discrimination and barriers that lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people may experience.
Delegates are encouraged to respond to individuals rather than relying on assumptions about identity, relationships or personal circumstances.
Age-related assumptions can influence recruitment, development, learning, service provision and perceptions of capability.
Delegates examine common stereotypes affecting both younger and older people and consider how decisions can remain evidence-based.
The programme can be tailored around the environment in which delegates work.
For businesses, charities and third-sector organisations.
For schools, colleges, training providers and universities.
For local authorities, NHS organisations, policing, criminal justice and other public services.
An employee, learner or service user appears to receive different treatment because assumptions have been made about their age, disability or background.
Delegates explore how to identify the evidence, challenge assumptions and improve decision-making.
A disabled person cannot participate fully because an existing process or environment creates a barrier.
Delegates consider what changes may be appropriate and how needs can be discussed respectfully.
Someone raises concerns that they have experienced discrimination, harassment or exclusion.
Delegates explore listening, recording, escalation and fair organisational responses.
A policy can appear neutral while creating disadvantage in practice.
Delegates consider how organisations can review eligibility criteria, procedures, communication and decision-making to identify unintended barriers.
Organisations may use data, complaints, feedback, employee or learner voice and service-user experience to understand whether particular groups experience different outcomes.
Monitoring should support enquiry and improvement rather than encouraging simplistic conclusions about individuals or groups.
By the end of the course, delegates should be better able to:
All our courses are tailored to ensure the training reflects your organisation's goals, service environment and equality priorities.
The course can be delivered face-to-face or online via Zoom or Teams.
To support participation, discussion and interaction, we recommend the following group sizes per session:
Need to train a larger workforce? No problem. We regularly work with organisations that need to train larger numbers of employees. Where appropriate, training can be delivered across multiple sessions to ensure everyone receives the same high-quality, interactive learning experience. We can develop a delivery programme to suit your workforce size, locations and timescales.
Please note: the half-day rate is not always available for face-to-face sessions.
Over 25 years' experience delivering equality, diversity and inclusion training, consultancy and professional development.
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