Equality Act 2010 s.56 – Interpretation

(1)This section applies for the purposes of section 55.

(2)The provision of an employment service includes—

(a)the provision of vocational training;

(b)the provision of vocational guidance;

(c)making arrangements for the provision of vocational training or vocational guidance;

(d)the provision of a service for finding employment for persons;

(e)the provision of a service for supplying employers with persons to do work;

(f)the provision of a service in pursuance of arrangements made under section 2 of the Employment and Training Act 1973 (functions of the Secretary of State relating to employment);

(g)the provision of a service in pursuance of arrangements made or a direction given under section 10 of that Act (careers services);

(h)the exercise of a function in pursuance of arrangements made under section 2(3) of the Enterprise and New Towns (Scotland) Act 1990 (functions of Scottish Enterprise, etc. relating to employment);

(i)an assessment related to the conferment of a relevant qualification within the meaning of section 53 above (except in so far as the assessment is by the qualifications body which confers the qualification).

(3)This section does not apply in relation to training or guidance in so far as it is training or guidance in relation to which another provision of this Part applies.

(4)This section does not apply in relation to training or guidance for pupils of a school to which section 85 applies in so far as it is training or guidance to which the responsible body of the school has power to afford access (whether as the responsible body of that school or as the responsible body of any other school at which the training or guidance is provided).

(5)This section does not apply in relation to training or guidance for students of an institution to which section 91 applies in so far as it is training or guidance to which the governing body of the institution has power to afford access.

(6) “Vocational training” means—

(a)training for employment, or

(b)work experience (including work experience the duration of which is not agreed until after it begins).

(7)A reference to the provision of a vocational service is a reference to the provision of an employment service within subsection (2)(a) to (d) (or an employment service within subsection (2)(f) or (g) in so far as it is also an employment service within subsection (2)(a) to (d)); and for that purpose—

(a)the references to an employment service within subsection (2)(a) do not include a reference to vocational training within the meaning given by subsection (6)(b), and

(b)the references to an employment service within subsection (2)(d) also include a reference to a service for assisting persons to retain employment.

(8)A reference to training includes a reference to facilities for training.

Definitions used in section 56 3

Employment

(2) “Employment” means—

(a)employment under a contract of employment, a contract of apprenticeship or a contract personally to do work;

(b)Crown employment;

(c)employment as a relevant member of the House of Commons staff;

(d)employment as a relevant member of the House of Lords staff.

Defined in s.83(2) · see it in the full Act

“employment” and related expressions are (subject to subsection (11)) to be read with section 83;

Defined in s.212(1) · see it in the full Act

Responsible body

(5) “Responsible body” means—

(a) in relation to a maintained school or a maintained nursery school, the local authority or governing body;

(b) in relation to a pupil referral unit, the local authority;

(c) in relation to an independent educational institution or an alternative provision Academy that is not an independent educational institution , the proprietor;

(d) in relation to a special school not maintained by a local authority, the proprietor.

Defined in Sch.10 para.6(5) · see it in the full Act

Governing body

(6) “Governing body”, in relation to a maintained school, means the body corporate (constituted in accordance with regulations under section 19 of the Education Act 2002 ) which the school has as a result of that section.

Defined in Sch.10 para.6(6) · see it in the full Act

Cases considering section 56 5

Blackwood v Birmingham & Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust

[2016] EWCA Civ 607 · 23 June 2016Interprets

The court accepted that providing vocational training is an employment service. A clinical work placement provided by the trust therefore fell within the section 55 regime unless excluded. (see paras [5]-[6]) Making arrangements for vocational training can overlap with a university’s provision of access to a benefit under section 91. That overlap justified construing section 56(5) to prevent duplicate claims, rather than to remove a provider’s liability for its own discriminatory conduct. (see para [51]) The court treated section 56(3) and section 56(5) as related anti-overlap provisions. This structural context undermined the argument that section 56(5) was intended solely to allocate all student-placement claims to a single forum. (see paras [10]; [54]) Section 56(5) was construed consistently with EU equality law to exclude section 55 only where the student can bring a section 91 claim concerning the discrimination. It therefore does not bar a section 55 claim against a placement provider for discrimination occurring during the placement. (see paras [45]-[55]; [61]-[63]) The definition of vocational training includes training for employment and work experience. The court used that definition to treat the clinical placement as an employment service for the statutory analysis. (see paras [5]-[6])

Chet v Capita Translation And Interpreting Ltd

[2015] UKEAT 0086_15_2407 · 24 July 2015Interprets

The court considered the definition of an employment service consisting of supplying employers with persons to do work when construing section 55(2). It held obiter that the employer was the relevant recipient of that service. (see paras [34]-[37])

Nwabueze v University of Law Ltd & Ors

[2020] EWCA Civ 1526 · 13 November 2020

Section 56 was referred to only to identify the distinct statutory work-placement scheme considered in Blackwood. The court did not construe it. (see para [13])

2 more judgments, and what each says about section 56, are in the case-law panel in the full Act.

Explanatory note

190.This section explains what the provision of an employment service includes (such as the provision of training for employment or careers guidance), and what it does not include (such as education in schools), for the purposes of section 55.

All the explanatory notes for the Act