Legislation protecting people in care
Equality Act 2010
Under the Equality Act 2010, it is unlawful to discriminate against someone because of certain ‘protected characteristics’ when you are for example:
- in the workplace
- being provided with a public service (like social care, health care, or education)
- being provided with a service or good by a business
These protected characteristics are:
- age
- disability
- gender reassignment
- marriage and civil partnership
- pregnancy and maternity
- race
- religion or belief
- sex
- sexual orientation
If you receive social care services and think you’ve been treated unfairly because of a protected characteristic, you may be able to challenge this.
You can find out more about discrimination from the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
Read about how to make a complaint about a social care service.
Find out more about the protected characteristics from Citizens Advice Scotland.
The information was last updated on: 31st October 2023