Protected characteristics

Age is defined in the Equality Act by reference to a persons age group.

An age group can mean people of the same age or people of a range of ages. Age groups can be wide (for example, "people under 50"; "under 18s"). They can also be quite narrow (for example, "people born in 1952"). Age groups may also be relative (for example, "older than me" or "older than us").

From the 1 October 2012 it became unlawful to discriminate because of age unless the practice is covered by an exception or good reason can be shown for differential treatment, i.e. ‘objective justification’ or there is an exception, for example relating to an age-based concession, age-verification or in age-banded sport categories. For full details of exceptions see the Equality Act.  

Keele recognises the diversity of our mature students and offers a wide range of support, through Keele's Student Support & Services for Mature students. 

The Equality Act defines disability as: a physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ negative effect on a person's ability to do normal daily activities.

• substantial’ is more than minor or trivial, e.g. it takes much longer than it usually would to complete a daily task like getting dressed
• ‘long-term’ means 12 months or more. Recurring and fluctuating conditions are covered if they recur in the long-term.

Only a few illnesses (cancer, HIV infection and multiple sclerosis) are covered by the Equality Act from the point of diagnosis. Generally, it is the effect of the illness / impairment on the individual that covers them under the Equality Act.

People with disabilities may need reasonable adjustments to access, and continue in, work or study, to reduce disadvantages that might otherwise arise. Staff may wish to consider Access to Work support.

Keele is a Disability Confident Employer and has a Staff Accessibility and Disability network.

Student Disability Support and Inclusion have a team of staff who help work with staff across the University to provide students with individual support for studying at Keele.  

The University has a range of accessible facilities across campus, and works proactively to anticipate needs and identify accessibility issues. For further information on campus accessibility please see AccessAble. 

The Equality Act defines gender reassignment as a protected characteristic. People who are proposing to undergo, are undergoing or have undergone a process (or part of a process) to reassign their sex by changing physiological or other attributes of sex have the protected characteristic of gender reassignment.

There is no requirement for any medical intervention to be made for a person to be protected under the Act.

The Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Transgender, Queer/Questioning and Intersex (LGBTQI+) network seeks to provide a safe, confidential, and supportive environment for all staff who identify as LGBTQI+ and others who identify under the LGBTQI umbrella.

We also have a number of LGBTI role models.

Support for LGBTQ+ students is available through our Student Support Services.

Travel: Those who identify as LGBTQ+ are advised to consider specific risks when travelling and ensure that they have up-to-date information.

• UK government advice for LGBT travellers gives general travel advice including links to a number of international LGB, LGBT and LGBTI organisations. 
• UK government advice by country gives country specific advice for all travellers. At the time of writing, information for LGBT travellers normally appears under the sub-heading "Local laws and Customs". Advice on behaviour considered appropriate for heterosexual and cis-gendered people is also high-lighted e.g. public displays of affection (such as hand-holding or kissing) or dress etc. 

Marriage and Civil Partnership are legal unions that are available to both same sex and opposite sex couples. They are considered a protected characteristic under the 2010 Equality Act. The law states that, in employment, you must not be treated less favourably because you are married or in a civil partnership.

Pregnancy and maternity discrimination, in the Equality Act relates to a member of staff who:

• is, or has been, pregnant
• has given birth and is treated unfavourably within a period of 26 weeks beginning with the day on which she gave birth
• is breastfeeding and is treated unfavourably within the period of 26 weeks beginning with the day on which she gave birth.

In relation to the University, the Equality Act prohibits discrimination because of pregnancy and maternity in employment, education and in the provision of goods and services.

Outside the 26-week period the staff member may be protected by the sex discrimination provisions. She is protected even when her baby is stillborn so long as she was pregnant for at least 24 weeks before she gave birth.

Keele has a range of policies and procedures to support its staff that are pregnant or on maternity leave. 

Additionally, the Protection from Redundancy (Pregnancy and Family Leave) Act 2023, for those who are pregnant or taking adoption or shared parental leave extends beyond the leave period as described in Keele's redundancy policy. 

For current staff see our Maternity Resources Hub.

The University provides an onsite Keele Day Nursery which offers a safe and stimulating environment for children from the ages of 12 weeks to 5 years.

The University supports a safe environment for nursing mothers, and has baby changing facilities located centrally on campus within the ground floor chancellors building, and also at Keele Hall.

Private facilities are available for breast feeding or milk expressing in the following buildings:

• David Weatherall
• Chancellor's Building
• Lennard Jones
• Huxley Building
• Keele Day Nursery

Should you wish to use any of the above facilities then please contact the Reception for the area, the local EDI lead, or your HR link Advisor. In addition, people are welcome to breast feed their infants across the campus restaurants and cafes.

The University support students who are pregnant or require a leave of absence due to pregnancy and maternity. Student Services will be happy to offer relevant support needed.

Race is a protected characteristic that refers to an individual's race, colour, nationality and ethnic or national origins.

Keele is a signatory of the Race Equality Charter and holds Silver Race Equality Charter Award. 

The staff Race Equity and Cultural Heritage (REACH) network is open to all staff, who self-identify as having Black, African, Caribbean, East Asian, South Asian, mixed, or other minoritised ethnic heritages.

The protected characteristic of religion or belief includes any religion and any religious or philosophical belief. It also includes a lack of any such religion or belief. 

A belief need not include faith or worship of a God or Gods, but must affect how a person lives their life or perceives the world.

To test whether a philosophical belief would qualify under the equality act there are 5 criteria (the Grainger Criteria):

• it must be genuinely held;
• it must be a belief and not an opinion or viewpoint based on the present state of information available;
• it must be a belief as to a weighty and substantial aspect of human life and behaviour;
• it must attain a certain level of cogency, seriousness, cohesion and importance;
• it must be worthy of respect in a democratic society, not incompatible with human dignity and not in conflict with the fundamental rights of others.

The Faith at Keele webpages gives details of faith support and links to student societies.

Sex is a protected characteristic and refers to a male or a female of any age. In relation to a group of people it refers to either men and/or boys or women and/or girls.

A comparator for the purposes of showing sex discrimination will be a person of the opposite sex. 

There are some exceptions that allow different treatment by sex. For example, sports clubs can operate single sex teams etc. 

Sexual orientation is a protected characteristic. It means a person’s sexual orientation towards:

• persons of the same sex (that is, the person is a gay man or a lesbian);
• persons of the opposite sex (that is, the person is heterosexual); or
• persons of either sex (that is, the person is bisexual)

The Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Transgender, Queer/Questioning and Intersex (LGBTQI+) network seeks to provide a safe, confidential, and supportive environment for all staff who identify as LGBTQI+ and others who identify under the LGBTQI umbrella.

We also have a number of LGBTI role models.

Support for LGBTQ+ students is available through our Student Support Services.

Travel: Those who identify as LGBTQ+ are advised to consider specific risks when travelling and ensure that they have up-to-date information.

• UK government advice for LGBT travellers gives general travel advice including links to a number of international LGB, LGBT and LGBTI organisations. 
• UK government advice by country gives country specific advice for all travellers. At the time of writing, information for LGBT travellers normally appears under the sub-heading "Local laws and Customs". Advice on behaviour considered appropriate for heterosexual and cis-gendered people is also high-lighted e.g. public displays of affection (such as hand-holding or kissing) or dress etc.