Our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion

1. We recognise that we live in a society where discrimination still operates to the disadvantage of many groups in society.
2. We believe that everyone should have equal rights in recognition of their human dignity, and to have equal opportunities to be educated, to work, receive services and to participate in society.
3. We are committed to the promotion of equal opportunities within the National Kidney Federation. In order to express this commitment, we develop, promote and maintain policies that will be conducive to the principles of fairness and equality in the workplace.
4. The objective of this policy is that no person should suffer or experience less favourable treatment, discrimination or lack of opportunities on the grounds of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or any other grounds which cannot be shown to be justifiable within the context of this policy.
5. This policy will influence and affect every aspect of activities carried out at the National Kidney Federation.
6. In the provision of services and the employment of staff and trustees, National Kidney Federation is committed to promoting equal opportunities for everyone. Throughout all our operations we will treat all people equally whether they are:

• A beneficiary.
• Applying for a job or already employed by us.
• A trustee.
• Trainee workers and students on work experience or placements.
• Volunteers.

Application of this policy

Our trustees and management team have responsibility for ensuring full compliance with this policy by all of our staff and volunteers.

To achieve this we will:

• Communicate the policy to employees, job applicants, volunteers and relevant others.
• Incorporate specific and appropriate duties in respect of implementing the equality and diversity policy into role descriptions and objectives of all staff and volunteers.
• Ensure that those who are involved in assessing candidates for recruitment or promotion will be trained in nondiscriminatory techniques.
• Incorporate equal opportunity notices into general communication practices.
• Ensure that adequate resources are made available to fulfill the objectives of the policy.

Conduct and general standards of behaviour

All staff, trustees and volunteers are expected to conduct themselves in a professional, dignified, respectful and considerate manner at all times.

Any behaviour or actions by staff, trustees or volunteers causing offence based upon the protected characteristics as defined within the Equality Act 2010 or harassment will not be tolerated and may lead to disciplinary action and possibly termination of employment in the case of staff or the removal of volunteers, as appropriate.

Complaints of discrimination

We will treat seriously all complaints of unlawful discrimination on any protected grounds made by employees, trustees, clients or other third parties and will take appropriate action in response to these.

All complaints will be investigated in accordance with the charity's grievance, and disciplinary procedures.

National Kidney Federation's management team will monitor the number and outcomes of complaints of discrimination made by staff, volunteers, supporters and other third parties and will take appropriate action in response to incidents and any trends identified.

Equality Act 2010

National Kidney Federation is committed to meeting all of its obligations as a responsible employer in accordance with the Equality Act 2010.

1. We will ensure that employees making selection and recruitment decisions will not discriminate, whether consciously or unconsciously, in making these decisions.
2. Promotion and advancement will be made on merit and all decisions relating to this will be made within the overall framework and principles of this policy.
3. Job descriptions will be drafted and maintained in accordance with the provisions of this policy.
4. We will maintain a consistently fair and non-discriminatory approach to the advertising of vacancies.
5. All applicants for employment and voluntary roles will receive fair treatment and will be considered solely on their ability to undertake all aspects of the role as it is defined.
6. The shortlisting, interviewing and appointment of candidates will be conducted by a diverse panel of National Kidney Federation's managers and/or trustees in accordance with our recruitment and selection procedure.
7. Candidates will be selected for any given role based upon their ability to undertake all aspects and requirements as defined within the role description and person specification.

Monitoring

Records of all employees and volunteers will be strictly maintained in order to monitor compliance with this policy. This will be managed in accordance with the GDPR policy.

In addition, monitoring of our compliance with this policy may involve:

• The collection of data relating to the diversity of our trustees, volunteers and employees' ethnicity, age, religion.
• Auditing of recruitment processes, procedures and outcomes.
• Reviewing the regularity, context and trends of any employee disputes, disciplinary actions or complaints.
• Ensuring the inclusion of any adjustments to this policy in recognition of any legal changes that may occur from time to time.

Review and Approval

This policy was approved on Saturday 13^th February 2021.