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Promoting the 9 Protected Characteristics
The Equality Act became law in 2010. It covers everyone in Britain and protects people from discrimination, harassment and victimisation. Everyone in Britain is protected. This is because the Equality Act protects people against discrimination because of the protected characteristics that we all have. Under the Equality Act, there are nine Protected Characteristics:
Under the Equality Act you are protected from discrimination:
The 9 Protected Characteristics are actively promoted in school through:
At our school, rather than teaching all the protected characteristics in every year group, we ensure that our children are given opportunities to develop age-appropriate knowledge and understanding through a well-planned and delivered curriculum. Please refer to the document below to see how Protected Characteristics are also covered within our use of the Jigsaw PSHE scheme.
We have aligned Jigsaw PSHE lessons to the Equality Act. The grid below shows how particular Jigsaw lessons address these themes:
Protected Characteristics | What this refers to | Links to Jigsaw |
|---|---|---|
| Age | Where this is referred to, it refers to a person belonging to a particular age or range of ages. | Changing Me Age 4-5 Piece 3: Growing up Age 5-6 Piece 1: Life cycles Age 5-6 Piece 2: Changing me Age 6-7 Piece 2: Growing from young to old Age 6-7 Piece 2: Changing me
Dreams & Goals Age 4-5 Piece 5: Flight to the future |
| Gender Reassignment | The process of transitioning from one gender to another. | Celebrating Difference Age 6-7 Piece 5: Gender Diversity NB: there is no direct reference to transgender or the concept of transitioning in this lesson. |
| Being married or in a civil partnership | Marriage is no longer restricted to a union between a man and a woman but now includes a marriage between a same-sex couple. Same-sex couples can also have their relationships legally recognised as 'civil partnerships'. Civil partners must not be treated less favourably than married couples (except where permitted by the Equality Act). | Celebrating Difference Age 5-6 Piece 1: Families Age 6-7 Piece 1: Families |
Being pregnant or on maternity leave | Pregnancy is the condition of being pregnant or expecting a baby. Maternity refers to the period after the birth, and is linked to maternity leave in the employment context. In the non-work context, protection against maternity discrimination is for 26 weeks after giving birth, and this includes treating a woman unfavourably because she is breastfeeding. | Celebrating Difference Age 4-5 Piece 3: Families
Changing me Age 5-6 Piece 1: Life cycles Age 6-7 Piece 2: Growing from young to old |
| Disability | A person has a disability is she or he has a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on that person's ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities | Celebrating Difference Age 6-7 Piece 4: Standing up for Myself and others Age 4-5 Piece 2: I'm Special, I'm Me! Age 5-6 Piece 1 &2: The same as....different from... Age 5-6 Piece 6: Celebrating difference; celebrating me |
Race including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin | Refers to the protected characteristic of Race. It refers to a group of people defined by their race, colour, and nationality (including citizenship) ethnic or national origins. | Celebrating Difference Age 4-5 Piece 2: I'm Special, I'm Me! Age 4-5 Piece 3: Families (around the world) Age 5-6 Piece 1 &2: The same as....different from... Age 5-6 Piece 6: Celebrating difference; celebrating me |
| Religion, belief or lack of religion/belief | Religion has the meaning usually given to it but belief includes religious and philosophical beliefs including lack of belief (such as Atheism). Generally, a belief should affect your life choices or the way you live for it to be included in the definition. | Celebrating Difference Age 4-5 Piece 2: I'm Special, I'm Me! Age 4-5 Piece 3: Families (around the world) Age 5-6 Piece 1 &2: The same as....different from... Age 5-6 Piece 6: Celebrating difference; celebrating me |
| Sex | A man or a woman. | Celebrating Difference Age 6-7 Piece 1&2: Boys & Girls Age 5-6 Piece 1 &2: The same as....different from... Age 5-6 Piece 6: Celebrating difference; celebrating me Age 4-5 Piece 2: I'm Special, I'm Me!
Changing me! Age 5-6 Piece 4: Boys' and Girls' bodies Age 6-7 Piece 4: Boys' and Girls' bodies |
| Sexual orientation | Whether a person's sexual attraction is towards their own sex, the opposite sex or to both sexes. | Celebrating Difference Age 6-7 Piece 4: Standing up for Myself and others Age 5-6 Piece 1 &2: The same as....different from... Age 4-5 Piece 2: I'm Special, I'm Me! |