Equality, diversity andInclusion policy

Equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) is at the heart of everything we do at the PDA Society. We exist to support all PDA individuals and everyone in their lives to thrive. We know that discrimination, inequality and exclusion is the lived experience of many PDAers. We don’t believe this is right.

If we want to be a force for good in tackling inequality, we know we must start in our own organisation. If we can cultivate a culture here where we; value each person as an
individual; treat everyone with dignity and respect, recognising all parts of their identity and people feel safe to be themselves here then that will actively make us better as we strive for fairness in wider society.

The policy refers to the Equality Act 2010 and to our legal obligations. At the PDA Society we want to go beyond our legal requirements for EDI. We want there to be EDI throughout our team, and to eliminate all forms of discrimination from our working practices and culture.

This policy applies to all our employees, trustees, volunteers, self -employed contractors or anyone working on behalf of the PDA Society. For the purpose of this policy, all those listed above will be referred to as ‘team members’. We will also reflect this policy in our ways of working with those we support and that use our services. We expect everyone involved in PDA Society to be actively engaged in considering how we can deliberately build fairness and equity into everything we do.

We aim for our team to be truly representative of the diverse countries we serve on every measure and we will actively seek to provide an environment in which everyone is supported to thrive. We want all team members and those who work with us to feel respected and be able to give their best.

We will respect the diversity of all team members and treat them fairly and equally. The PDA Society will not tolerate any form of discrimination including age, disability, gender
reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

It is the responsibility of every individual, whether working alone or within a team, to ensure their own conduct at a minimum meets the standards outlined in this policy and that they report any inappropriate behaviour they witness. Any acts that breach this policy and all instances of alleged inappropriate behaviour will be fully investigated under our disciplinary procedure. Any employee who believes that they may have been subjected to treatment that breaches this policy is encouraged to raise the matter through our grievance procedure.

This policy covers recruitment and selection, terms and conditions of employment (including performance management, reward, promotion, training and development) and every other aspect of our work, including how we consider and work to improve the inclusiveness of the help we provide.

All team members will be required to read this policy and confirm via our HR system Breathe they have read and understood the contents. This process will be repeated annually to ensure that all team members are aware of these policies principles and ways of working.

Equality is about ensuring equality of access, treatment, outcomes and impact in both employment and the delivery of services. It is rooted in ideas of fairness and justice and is
enshrined in the United Kingdom Equality Act 2010 which highlights that every individual must have an equal opportunity to make the most of their lives and talents. It is also the belief that no one should have poorer life chances because of their background, personal identity or experience (CIPD, 2024). We aim to promote equality by removing barriers, eliminating discrimination and ensuring equal opportunity and access for all groups of people, both within the PDA Society and externally among those organisations with whom we have formal relationships and those we support.

Diversity is the differences in colour, ethnicity, abilities, age, gender, beliefs, interests, socioeconomic (class), marital or partnership status, sexual orientation, geographic, academic/professional backgrounds, opinions, backgrounds, thinking, experiences and many other characteristics Diversity recognises that everyone is different in a variety of
visible and non-visible ways, and that those differences are to be respected, recognised, promoted, valued and celebrated. They may include, but are not limited to, differences
protected by equalities law (CIPD, 2024). At the PDA Society we accept each person as an individual. We embrace diversity and believe that everyone should feel valued for their
contributions.

Inclusion is the practice of including people in a way that is fair for all, values everyone’s differences, and empowers and enables each person to be themselves and achieve their
full potential and thrive at work. An inclusive workplace culture is one in which everyone feels that they belong through feeling safe in being themselves, that their contribution
matters, policies and practices are fair and diverse range of people are supported to work together effectively (CIPD, 2024). We aim to create a working culture where we value the whole person and the experiences they bring to work.

This policy’s purpose is to:
1. Provide equality, fairness and respect for all in our employment, whether temporary, parttime or full-time.

2. Not unlawfully discriminate because of the Equality Act 2010 protected characteristics of:

• Age.
• Disability.
• Gender reassignment.
• Marriage and civil partnership.
• Pregnancy and maternity.
• Race (including colour, nationality, and ethnic or national origin).
• Religion or belief.
• Sex.
• Sexual orientation.

3. Oppose and avoid all forms of unlawful discrimination. This includes in:

• Pay and benefits.
• Terms and conditions of employment.
• Dealing with grievances and discipline.
• Dismissal.
• Redundancy.
• Leave for parents.
• Requests for flexible working.
• Selection for employment, promotion, training or other developmental opportunities.

Other relevant legislation is the:

• Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974
• Immigration Act 2016
• Human Rights Act 1998
• Care Act 2014
• Modern Slavery Act 2015

The CEO is responsible for:

• Reviewing, endorsing and achieving this policy’s aims

The Trustees are responsible for:

• Recognising their role of leading by example; in being accountable for equality, diversity and inclusion and increasing awareness of this within the charity.

HR is responsible for:

• Ensuring that all PDA Society policies, processes, procedures and practices underpin delivery of this policy and are regularly reviewed.
• Sharing best practice throughout the charity and ensuring any legal changes are included in any policy revisions.
• Measuring and monitoring our demographic profile and reporting trends to the CEO.
• Providing relevant advice and supporting managers in championing inclusion across the charity.

Managers are responsible for:

• Implementing and enforcing the processes and procedures.
• Ensuring that members of their teams are aware of their responsibilities and receive appropriate training.
• Addressing any inappropriate behaviour.
• Actively talking with team members about whose experiences may be missing from our discussions and how we can reach out to and meet the needs of any groups of people who are underserved by our organisation.

All team members are responsible for:

• Carrying out their work in line with this policy and associated processes and procedures.
• Respecting the rights of all PDA Society team members to work in an environment that is free from prejudice and discrimination.
• Identifying any breaches of this policy and reporting them to their line manager.
• Actively seeking to build cultural awareness, sensitivity and inclusion into how they deliver their roles, in order that anyone who needs to can access our services.

a) To ensure that equality, diversity and inclusion is encouraged and embraced throughout the organisation.

b) To provide a safe and accessible working environment that values and respects the identity and culture of each individual.

c) To ensure the working environment is free from discrimination, harassment and victimisation. No form of intimidation, bullying or harassment will be tolerated.

d) To promote dignity and respect for all, and recognise, respect and value the differences we all bring to work.

e) To continually improve our understanding and application of diversity, inclusion and equality by identifying and promoting best practice and reviewing our policy regularly.

f) To make the PDA Society the best place to work for those with PDA and those who support them.

Recruitment:

1. Employ a workforce that reflects the diversity of those we support. This also applies to the make-up of our board of Trustees.

2. Regularly review our recruitment policy and selection practices, to ensure an inclusive system whereby individuals are selected, developed, promoted and treated solely based
on their merits and abilities (apart from in any necessary and limited exemptions and exceptions allowed under the Equality Act).

3. Within our recruitment process we shortlist based on statements with no personal data included. This allows us to select purely on the skills required in the job description and minimises the risk of any unconscious bias.

4. We send our interview questions in advance of the interview, thus reducing anxiety that may be stronger in neurodivergent candidates. This allows us to help see everyone at
their best. We also ask about reasonable adjustments before the interview.

5. We always advertise our external vacancies within our online community and through our PDA mailing list. Some vacancies may be advertised internally only. We also list
external opportunities on at least one public site. This means we can attract candidates from the community we support and ensure that if there are communities we are not yet
meeting the needs of, that they are not excluded from applying.

Management:

1. We ensure all team members are managed in a fair and equitable way. We will induct managers and all other employed and self-employed team members about their rights
and responsibilities under this policy. Responsibilities include staff conducting themselves to help the organisation provide equal opportunities in employment, and prevent bullying, harassment, victimisation and unlawful discrimination. All staff should understand they, as well as their employer, can be held liable for acts of bullying, harassment, victimisation and unlawful discrimination, in the course of their employment, against fellow employees, customers, suppliers and the public.

2. We will take seriously any complaints of bullying, harassment, victimisation and unlawful discrimination by fellow employees, contractors, users of our services and any others during the organisation’s work activities. Such acts will be dealt with as misconduct under the organisation’s grievance and/or disciplinary procedures, and appropriate action will be taken. Particularly serious complaints could amount to gross misconduct and lead to dismissal without notice. Further, sexual harassment may amount to both an
employment rights matter and a criminal matter, such as in sexual assault allegations. In addition, harassment under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 – which is not
limited to circumstances where harassment relates to a protected characteristic – is a criminal offence.

3. We will ensure training, development and progression opportunities are provided to all employees equally.

4. We embrace appropriate local disability initiatives and quality standards where available. We have been awarded with the Disability Confident accreditation service through the UK government which helps demonstrate our commitment to improve how we recruit, retain and develop disabled people.

5. We will ensure our policies and practices address potential issues of work-life balance.

6. We provide fair and transparent pay structures and reward systems.

7. We support employees in providing a workplace that recognises their needs, for example, the use of workstation assessments.

8. We offer all employees the right to work their hours flexibly, and in a way that suits both the charities and the individual’s needs.

Provision of services:

1. Our services are open to all to use with no restrictions on access. We seek to employ team members who are representative of the community we serve.

2. We use the data we collect to check whether the profile of people benefiting from our support reflects that of the countries we serve. Where this is not the case, we will take
proactive action to consider what we can do to change the promotion and delivery of our services so that access to our support is equally available.

3. Where we identify organisations that support people who experience structural inequality whose needs are underserved by us – we will actively seek ways to work with them to increase our impact.

Review:

1. Regularly review our processes to ensure that we encourage diversity through all our organisational policies and procedures as part of the annual policy review.

2. Ensure we have safe and accessible working environments as part of our Health and Safety policy annual review.

3. Ensure any changes in UK law are implemented.

4. Promote organisational diversity even where the legal frameworks do not automatically require this.

5. Conduct exit interviews to understand employees’ motives for leaving and seek to gain recommendations for improvement.

In addition to the review section above, the effectiveness of our policies and practices are monitored by an annual demographic survey for all employees, contractors and volunteers. This will include information regarding age, sex, ethnic background, sexual orientation, religion or belief, and disability.

We also request demographic from prospective candidates as part of the recruitment process. All data is stored securely and is password protected.

Monitoring will also include assessing how the equality, diversity and inclusion policy, and any supporting action plan, are working in practice, reviewing them annually, and
considering and taking action to address any issues.

We encourage all employees to disclose personal information, including their ethnicity and disability status, to help inform us about how we can best support diversity in the workforce.

Our regular feedback surveys for our services collect demographic data which will be reviewed annually through the lens of equity, to allow us to assess and respond to any inequality of access

Details of the PDA Societies grievance and disciplinary policies and procedures can be found within employment contracts and the employee handbook. Use of the organisation’s grievance or disciplinary procedures does not affect an employee’s right to make a claim to an employment tribunal within three months of the alleged discrimination.

* In the event of a serious issue, the People and Operations Manager will consult with the CEO to consider any policy / procedure changes that may be required before the review date.

• Equality Act 2010: guidance – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)Equality Act 2010: guidance – GOV.U https://www.gov.uk/guidance/equality-act-2010-guidanceK (www.gov.uk)
• Equality, diversity and inclusion in the Workplace | Factsheets | CIPDkplace | Factsheets | CI https://www.cipd.org/uk/knowledge/factsheets/diversityfactsheet/PD