Equality and Human Rights Commission consultation on Code of Practice

The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has recently opened a consultation on its updated Code of Practice for services, public functions and associations.

The Code of Practice covers in detail how the Equality Act 2010 works in relation to the provision of services, public functions and associations. Part 3 of the Code of Practice is based on the principle that people with the “protected characteristics” set out in the Act should not be discriminated against when using any service regardless of whether that service is paid for or not or provided publicly or privately.

The consultation period ends on 3 January 2025.

Background

There are in fact three Codes of Practice covering the provisions of the Act:

Code of Practice on employment
Code of Practice on equal pay
Code of Practice for services, public functions and associations

The EHRC describes the Codes of Practice as “the authoritative sources of guidance” on the Act and they are taken into account by courts and tribunals when interpreting the Act.

Consultation

The Code of Practice Code for services, public functions and associations was published in 2011 and there have been many significant developments since then.

The Code of Practice covers discrimination, harassment and victimisation in services and public functions (Part 3 of the Act) and discrimination by associations (Part 7 of the Act). It also covers obligations under the Act as well as reasonable adjustments, positive action and enforcement. The Code of Practice applies the legal concepts in the Act to everyday situations and provides many practical examples.

The Code of Practice has been updated to:

Incorporate the EHRC’s technical guidance on age discrimination from March 2016
Reflect the legal understanding set out in the EHRC’s guidance about single sex services from April 2022
Reflect legislative and case law developments since 2011, for example, cases relating to the definition of disability

The purpose of the consultation is to obtain feedback on the updated Code of Practice to establish whether the EHRC’s interpretation of the law is clearly articulated. In addition, to make the Code of Practice “as accessible and easy to understand as possible” for service providers, public bodies and associations and legal advisors.

Details of the consultation can be found here.