Age

1. Age

Last Updated: August 2020

According to the Equality Act (2010), age discrimination is when someone is treated differently because of their age. This can occur due to a one-off action, or can be caused by a rule or policy. Discrimination does not have to be intentional to be unlawful, however in some cases being treated differently due to age is lawful – further information on these lawful exceptions can be found on the Equality and Human Rights Commission website.

The Equality Act (2010) states that that you must not be discriminated against because: you are, or are not, a certain age or in a certain age group; someone thinks you are, or are not, a specific age or age group (this is known as discrimination by perception); you are connected to someone of a specific age or age group (this is known as discrimination by association). Age groups can be quite wide (for example, ‘people under 50’ or 'under 18s'). They can also be quite specific (for example, ‘people in their mid-40s’). Terms such as ‘young person’ and ‘youthful’ or ‘elderly’ and ‘pensioner’ can also indicate an age group. Age discrimination impacts people at all stages of their life whether it be education, recruitment or retirement.

There are different forms of age discrimination including direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation.

At SVC, we are committed to promoting and developing equality, diversity and inclusion in our actions, projects, and practices.

  1. Our Equal Opportunities 2020 policy outlines that age discrimination is unlawful. Please read the policy for more information;
  2. Anyone involved in SVC is encouraged to report any form of age discrimination to SVC staff, SVC Board of Trustees, or the HR department at Innovate Trust. Please read our Problem Solving Procedure for more information;
  3. According to SVC’s Annual Report 2019-2020 our volunteers were:

1% aged 16 – 17

67% aged 18 – 21

21% aged 21 – 24

9% aged 25 – 39

1% aged 40 – 60

1% aged 60 +

Accordingly, SVC commits to promoting volunteering opportunities more widely in order to recruit a more representative demographic of volunteers;

      4. SVC strives to represent a diverse range of volunteers and beneficiaries relating to age in promotional materials;

      5. SVC will ensure risk assessments and reasonable adjustments are put in place that are related to age;

      6. Please see SVC’s Equality Diversity and Inclusion Statement and Commitments page for more commitments.

References:

Equality Human Rights Website (2020) Age Discrimination. Available at: 

https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/advice-and-guidance/age-discrimination

SVC’s Annual Report (2020) Volunteer Demographics. Available at: 

https://www.svcymru.org/files/svc-annual-report-2019-20.pdf

SVC’s Policies and Procedures (2020) Equal Opportunities Policy. Available at:  

https://www.svcymru.org/files/2020-04/1587657043_svc-equal-opportunities-policy-2020.pdf?f4d9f1a4c7

SVC’s Policies and Procedures (2020) Problem Solving Procedure. Available at: 

https://www.svcymru.org/files/2020-04/1587657176_problem-solving-procedure-april-2020.docx.pdf?f0b2d37ef3