NHS Lothian values its disabled employees and recognises that they bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the organisation.
We are committed to ensuring equality of opportunity, support and fair treatment for all individual employees and applicants in order that their specific needs are addressed, and their abilities recognised. We wish to promote a culture where there is proactive, open and supportive discussion between staff and their managers to allow joint decisions to be made.
Defining Disability
A person is considered disable under the Equality Act 2010 if:
• They have ‘an impairment’ – meaning their physical or mental abilities are different or reduced in some way compared to most people
• The impairment makes it harder to do everyday activities; and
• The effect of the impairment is long-term (usually having lasted or expected to last 12 months or more)
This includes physical and mental disabilities, visible or hidden, as well as neurodivergence and long-term health conditions.
NHS Lothian is a member of the Disability Confident Scheme and currently holds Level 2 – Disability Confident Employer status.
As a Disability Confident Employer, NHS Lothian has committed to actively:
• Interview all applicants with a disability who meet the ‘essential criteria’ on a person specification and consider them on their abilities.
• Provide a fully inclusive and accessible recruitment process.
• Be flexible when assessing people, so that disabled job applicants have the best opportunity to demonstrate they can so the job.
• Make reasonable adjustments in the workplace as required.
To find out more about please see the Disability Confident Scheme page.
NHS Lothian has a Disability Passport in place, the disability passport is intended to guide a conversation to find the best ways to reduce barriers and enable staff to thrive in their roles. The passport aims to support individuals throughout the employment relationship, from recruitment to the retention of staff who become disabled or whose individual circumstances related to their disability change, and to raise awareness of managers’ responsibilities on behalf of NHS Lothian to support staff with a disability in a positive and constructive manner.
The Disability Passport is designed to be used in conjunction with the NHS Lothian guidance on Reasonable Adjustments. This guidance aims to support individuals throughout the employment relationship, from recruitment to the retention of staff who become disabled or whose individual circumstances related to their disability change, and to raise awareness of managers’ responsibilities on behalf of NHS Lothian to support staff with a disability in a positive and constructive manner.
Examples of reasonable adjustments at interview include:
- Interview questions made available in advance
- Ground floor interview rooms or interviews over video conference
- Alternative formats for skills testing
Examples of reasonable adjustments during employment include:
- Assistive technology such as text-to-speech and speech-to-text software
- Noise-cancelling headphones
- Flexible working location and patterns
Hiring and line managers will work with applicants and staff to make reasonable adjustments throughout the employment journey.
Disabled Employee Network
The Disabled Employee Network (DEN) welcomes any member of NHS Lothian staff who identifies as disabled, neurodivergent, or with a long-term health condition. You don’t need a formal diagnosis, and you don’t need to disclose your condition to your line manager or to other DEN members.
We work closely with DEN to ensure we are meeting the needs of our disabled staff.
We continue to work closely with our Disabled Employee Network to ensure we are meeting the needs of our disabled staff.
