Discrimination is defined in law (the Equality Act 2010) and typically occurs when a person is treated less favourably than someone else because of a protected characteristic. Protected characteristics include :
- Age
- Disability
- Sex
- Gender reassignment
- Race
- Religion or belief
- Sexual orientation.
- Marriage or civil partnership
- Pregnancy or maternity
Discrimination can take different forms: it can be direct discrimination or indirect and can sometimes occur where someone is treated less favourably because they are perceived as having a particular protected characteristic (e.g. they are wrongly perceived to be gay or lesbian etc.) or because they are associated with a person who has a protected characteristic (e.g. their child has a disability).
The Equality and Human Rights Commission has guidance for individuals - Individuals | EHRC (equalityhumanrights.com)