I have recently been reflecting on just how far you can simplify equality law before it ceases to be accurate. The question arose in the context of one of my current projects: working with a university.
Before starting this work, I had not fully appreciated the sheer complexity of a university as a legal entity under the Equality Act 2010. In practice, a university may simultaneously fall into a number of legal categories:
• An employer – Part 5
• A higher education provider – Part 6, Chapter 2
• A service provider – Part 3
• A premises provider – Part 4
• A public authority – Section 149 (Public Sector Equality Duty)
• A charity – Section 193
• A membership association – Part 7
Each of these classifications brings with it specific obligations, limitations and exceptions. The result is a complex lattice of duties which staff, managers, agents and governing bodies need to recognise and incorporate into their everyday decision-making.
It is not enough to rely on a generalised understanding of “equality principles.” While there are overarching themes, each role brings nuances. For example, the property department will require different equality law guidance than the Head of the School of Biological Sciences. Likewise, the distinction between vocational and non-vocational courses has implications for what counts as a reasonable adjustment in the context of disability.
And that is before we layer in interactions with other areas of law – from academic freedom to planning regulation to criminal law.
All of this sits under the governance umbrella of risk management, rather than being a peripheral “HR issue.”
The goal of my work in this area is to support busy staff and managers to “think like equality lawyers” when designing policies or making decisions. Training is not simply about conveying the statute, but about framing the questions a court might ask:
• What competing rights are engaged?
• What alternatives were considered?
• Is there evidence that the less discriminatory route was weighed and, if rejected, why?
In short, helping universities embed equality law not as an afterthought but as a core part of responsible governance.
If your university needs this support do get in touch.
Equality Law and the University: An Illustration of Complexity
