Website of the Department of Health

Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Advisory Group

The Department of Health is currently working with LGBT stakeholders on the development of a sexual orientation and gender identity equality strategy. A Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Advisory Group is assisting with this work, which is moving forward  through three four workstreams: health inequalties, better employment, inclusive services  and transgender health.

• Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Advisory Group

Making health services inclusive

Training has an important role to play in assisting health and social care organisations to ensure services are inclusive for lesbian, gay and bisexual people. The report below , produced by Diverse Identities, provides best practice training standards for sexual orientation. The Department of Health commissioned the report to assist health and social care organisations in promoting equality.

• Core training standards for sexual orientation: Making National Health Services inclusive for lesbian gay and bisexual people

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender young people

A webpage on the Care Services Improvement Partnership (CSIP) Children, Young People and Families Programme website with relevant policies, evidence base, information and resources for LGBT young people, parents of LGBT young people and those who work with LGBT young people.

• Care Services Improvement Partnership: Social inclusion (opens new window)

LGBT resources on the CSIP Knowledge Community

Includes research, policies, news, projects and resources on issues such as health, mental health, sexual health, alcohol and drugs, education, housing, law, employment, hate crime, and communities including BME, disabled, toung, old, and trans.

• CSIP Knowledge Community (opens new window)

Real stories, real lives: LGBT people and the NHS

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people need to be treated with respect as both service users and employees.

This resource includes five modules: the stories included in each module show the real life experiences of LGBT service users and staff in the health and social care system. It can be used as a practical tool in training staff and raising awareness.

• Real stories, real lives: LGBT people and the NHS

An introduction to working with lesbian, gay and bisexual people

The Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2007 made it unlawful for health and social care organisations to discriminate unfairly against lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) people. This leaflet is intended to support health and social care organisations ensure LGB people do not experience discrimination and prejudice in service delivery.

• An introduction to working with lesbian, gay and bisexual people: information for health and social care staff

Monitoring sexual orientation in the health sector

This guide should assist all those involved in equality within the health sector, but will be particularly useful for human resource managers who work in the NHS and social care and allied health organisations.

• Monitoring sexual orientation in the health sector

Harassment and sexual orientation in the health sector

This guide should be useful for all those involved in implementing equality within the health sector, including equality in service delivery, but will be particularly useful for central agencies who wish to consider new methods of protecting all staff in the health sector from harassment.

• Harassment and sexual orientation in the health sector
• British Medical Association Equal Opportunities Committee (2005) - Sexual orientation in the workplace (opens new window)

Reducing health inequalities for lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people: briefings for health and social care staff

These briefings provide easy-to-read guidance for health and social care commissioners, service planners and front line staff to inform the delivery of appropriate services to LGBT people. These briefings were developed from an earlier report that the Department commissioned Stonewall to undertake on the evidence of the health care needs of LGB people.

• Reducing health inequalities for lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people - briefings for health and social care staff
• Stonewall report (2006): Reducing health inequalities for lesbian, gay and bisexual people: evidence of health care needs
• UK Gay Men's Health Network (2004): Sexual exclusion: homophobia and health inequalities- a review of health inequalities and social exclusion experienced by lesbian, gay and bisexual people (opens new window)

Inclusive services

• Royal College of Nursing and UNISON - Not ‘just’ a friend: best practice guidance on health care for lesbian, gay and bisexual service users and their families - in Portable Document Format (opens new window)
• Stonewall Scotland, NHS Scotland - Fair for all: the wider challenge: good LGBT practice in the NHS, NHS Inclusion Project: working for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender health (opens new window)

Other links

• Gay and Lesbian Association of Doctors and Dentists (GLADD) (opens new window)
• Lesbian Information Service (opens new window)
• Stonewall (opens new window)
• PRISM: the Department of Health Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Staff Group (opens new window)