We are committed to promoting equality, diversity, inclusion and belonging across NHS services in Essex. Our aim is to make sure everyone has fair access to healthcare, a positive experience, and the opportunity to achieve good health and wellbeing.
Health inequalities affect different communities in different ways. We work to understand these differences and take practical steps to reduce barriers to care and improve outcomes for all local people.
Supporting our workforce
We want NHS Essex to be an employer of choice. Our People Management Strategy explains how we support staff from recruitment through to career development.
We value a diverse workforce and work to create an inclusive culture where everyone feels respected, supported, and able to contribute. This helps us deliver better care and services for our communities.
Our equality, diversity, inclusion and belonging strategy
Our Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (EDIB) Strategy explains how we place equality and human rights at the centre of everything we do.
This includes how we:
- plan and deliver NHS services
- support and develop our workforce
- involve communities in decision-making
- communicate clearly and accessibly
We also review our policies and processes to ensure NHS Essex is a fair, inclusive and welcoming organisation.
Working with communities and partners
Our Joint Forward Plan describes how we work with partners, organisations and communities across Essex to improve health and care services.
Together, we focus on:
- improving fairness and access to care
- preventing illness and supporting early intervention
- providing joined-up, high-quality health and care services
- treating everyone with dignity and respect
- supporting staff to develop and thrive
Understanding people’s needs and listening to their experiences helps us design services that are accessible, inclusive and effective.
Equality reports, standards and workforce data
You can find more detailed information below about how we promote equality, monitor progress, and support both patients and staff.
- Equality objectives: how we meet the Public Sector Equality Duty and our equality priorities.
- Equality Delivery System (EDS): how we assess and improve equality in services and workforce experience.
- Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES): how we measure and improve race equality for NHS staff.
- Workforce Disability Equality Standard (WDES): How we support disabled staff and address inequalities in recruitment, development and experience.
- Workforce data: How we monitor workforce diversity and identify areas for improvement.
- Accessible Information Standard (AIS): how we ensure people receive information in formats they can understand.
- Gender pay gap: how we monitor and address pay differences between men and women.