Equality, diversity and inclusion

The Equality Act 2010 came into force in October 2010. It replaced a range of anti-discrimination laws with one single Act. The aim of the Act is to:

• strengthen the law
• fight discrimination in all its forms
• help to make equality real for everyone

Under the Act, we as a public authority must do everything we can to:

• end discrimination, harassment and victimisation
• advance equality of opportunity
• foster good relations between different parts of the community

It’s unlawful to discriminate anyone because of the following protected characteristics:

• age
• disability
• race or nationality
• sex
• gender reassignment
• sexual orientation
• religion or belief
• marriage and civil partnership
• pregnancy and maternity

It’s our duty to make sure that we:

• make sure people with protected characteristics do not suffer from any disadvantages
• meet the different needs of people with protected characteristics
• encourage people with protected characteristics to participate more in public life and activities

Each year we’re required to publish information about our equality objectives and how we're meeting them. You can read our latest Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) information here:

2019 EDI report

Equality and diversity policy

To help us achieve our duties under the Act, we’ve implemented something called the NHS Equality Delivery System 2 (EDS2). EDS2 has 4 goals:

1. Better health outcomes for all.
2. Improved patient access and experience.
3. Empowered, engaged and included staff.
4. Inclusive leadership at all levels.

Our performance is graded against these goals to form a series of objectives. Read our latest Equality Delivery System Report.

We have a statutory duty to assess how our policies and services affect our staff and patients. We call this an Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA). The purpose of the EQIA is to stop discrimination of all kinds.

You can read our latest EQIA here.

If you like to know more about Equality and Quality Impact Assessments, email our Workforce Futures and Inclusion team on equality@ncic.nhs.uk or call 01768 245415. You can also write to them at:

Employers with 250 or more staff must publish information about their gender pay gap. The gender pay gap compares men and women’s average pay across the organisation. It is not the same as equal pay, which is about making sure men and women doing the same or comparable jobs get the same pay.

We publish the following:

• gender pay gap (mean and median averages)
• gender bonus gap (mean and median averages)
• proportion of men and women receiving bonuses
• proportion of men and women in each quartile of the organisation’s pay structure

Our 2018 Gender Pay Gap Analysis

The Trust’s gender pay information is also published on the Government website.

• Annual EDI Report
• Equality and Diversity Policy
• Gender Pay Gap Analysis (CPFT and NCUH into 1 doc)
• Workforce Race Equality Standard (CPFT and NCUH into 1 doc)
• Workforce Disability Equality Standard (merge CPFT and NCUH into 1 doc)
• EDI Action Plan
• Equality Delivery System

We have over 150 EDI representatives who meet to identify ways we can improve and share learning and best practice. We also have 4 staff networks:

• Cultural Diversity
• LGBT
• Accessibility
• Armed Forces

If English is not your first language, we can arrange for an interpreter to come to your appointment.

If you need a translation of any of our publications or a different format like:

• Braille
• large print
• audio

Please email the Communications team on communications.helpdesk@ncic.nhs.uk or call 01228 603890. You can also write to them at:

We ask our staff to complete an annual survey. We use the results of the survey to make improvements to working conditions and patient care. You can read about the 2018 survey results here.