Information for person with mental health

What is a disability?

The DDA defines a disabled person as a person with "a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities."

The definition includes any impairment resulting from or consisting of a mental illness. The Disability Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order 2006 amended the original Act to remove the requirement for the mental impairment to be 'clinically well recognised' with effect from 1 October 2007.

Conditions that are therefore not regularly diagnosed by a doctor may now be covered as well as the more well known illnesses such as anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. It is not possible to provide an exhaustive list of conditions that qualify as impairments for the purposes of the Act.

However, anyone who has an impairment, including one resulting from a mental illness, will still need to meet the requirements of the definition of a disabled person, in order to demonstrate that they have a disability under the Act.

Whether a person is disabled for the purposes of the Act is generally determined by reference to the effect that impairment has on that person's ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. A person also has to show that their "impairment" has a substantial effect on particular activities. These activities are as follows:

mobility
manual dexterity
physical coordination
continence
ability to lift, carry or otherwise move everyday objects
speech, hearing or eyesight
memory or ability to concentrate, learn or understand perception of the risk of physical danger.

To obtain protection under the DDA a person has to demonstrate that their impairment lasted for at least 12 months, or is likely to last for at least that period,or is likely to last for the rest of the person's life or is recurrent.

If a person is being treated with medication to control or alleviate their impairment then the DDA disregards this and the person is still treated as being disabled for the purposes of the DDA.

A disability can arise from wide range of impairments such as:

impairments with fluctuating or recurring effects such as myalgic encephalitis (ME)/chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, depression and epilepsy;
progressive such as motor neurone disease, muscular dystrophy, dementia and lupus(SLE);
developmental, such as autistic spectrum disorder, dyslexia and dyspraxia;
learning difficulties;
mental health conditions and mental illness such as depression, schizophrenia, eating disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, bipolar affective disorders, personality disorder and self harm behaviour
produced by injury to the body or brain.

The DDA also applies to people who have experienced mental ill health in the past. The courts ultimately decide who meets the statutory definition.

Downloads: The DDA fact sheet on definition
The DDA booklet on definition
Statutory guidance on matters to be taken into account in determining questions relating to definition of disability

What does the DDA mean for me?

The DDA makes it unlawful for you to be discriminated against in:

Employment and occupation
Trade organisations and qualification bodies
Access to goods, facilities and services
Management, renting or buying land
Education

The DDA gives you protection at work from discrimination because of your mentalill health or for a reason relating to your mental ill health. If you are living with mental ill health, there may be times when you feel ill or you may experience side effects from medication and this impacts on you at work. There may be reasonable adjustments which could assist you with alleviating this disadvantage e.g. working flexible working hours or reallocating work just after changes in medication.

This applies to membership of a union, renting a property, obtaining a qualification or in education. This also applies when accessing a service to the public (eg. hospitals, solicitor's offices, hotels, gyms etc.).

Downloads: A Guide for Everybody - Revised

You may have or had mental ill health and you want to stay at work, apply for work or strive for promotion. If this is the case, then you have certain rights not to discriminated against because of or for a reason relating to your mental ill health.

The DDA applies to all employers in the UK irrespective of size except the armed forces. It covers a arrange of occupations and types of employment including partnerships in business, contract workers and office holders etc.

If you have developed mental ill health at work, there may be strategies you can adopt to ensure you keep your job and progress at work. Some of the common concerns for people with mental ill health are:

promotion, retention and redeployment
sick absence
training and development
health and safety
performance, disciplinary and redundancy

The Disability Discrimination Act makes it unlawful for an employer to discriminate against a disabled person:

in the terms of employment offered
in the opportunities for promotion, transfer, training or receiving any other benefit
by refusing to offer him, or deliberately not offering, any such opportunity, or
by dismissing the person, or subjecting them to any other treatment.

The Disability Discrimination Act makes it unlawful for you to be harassed in the workplace or for you to victimised for taking a complaint.

Downloads: What Employees and Job Applicants Need to Know - Revised
Year:2006 (190kb, 600kb, 31 pages)
Guidance for trade unions supporting people with mental health problems
Year:2006 (190kb, 600kb, 31 pages)

The DRC has published guidance for trade unions on supporting members with mental health problems to resolve workplace issues, in partnership with the TUC, Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health and Mindful Employer. It also identifies practical adjustments to support people with mental health problems in work, so will be useful to disabled people as well as trade union national officers and branches.

Do I have to declare that I have or had mental ill health?

The DDA does not say that an employee or job applicant must declare a disability to an employer or prospective employer. Many people with mental ill health do not consider themselves to be disabled and do not like the label. Often people with mental ill health are reluctant to declare a disability because of the stigma and discrimination they have faced when applying for work or in work. It is important to note that if you conceal your mental health on a medical form and it is found out at a later date, you can be dismissed.

The advantages of telling an employer about you mental ill health means that you will not have to explain the side effects of medication or be worried about trying to conceal the impairment. It does depend on the employers attitudes to mental health. An employer does have the right to consider your suitability for the post but this also means they have to consider what reasonable adjustments you might need before they make a decision. It is your choice.

An employer does have the right to consider your suitability for the post but this also means they have to consider what reasonable adjustments you might need before they make a decision. Employers have to abide by data protection law which safeguards confidentiality of personal or medical details.

Information about how the local disability advisor can assist you with finding work or staying in work.

Downloads: Asking employees and job applicants about disability - Fact Sheet 7 - Revised
Year:2006 (60kb, 4 pages)

Reasonable adjustments for people with mental ill health in employment

Mental health survivors and people with mental health impairments may require reasonable adjustments to get the job done. Some people may never require any adjustments, others may require more at different times. Reasonable adjustments are individual to the person.

All employers are required to identify what adjustments will overcome either physical features or provisions, criteria or practices which substantially disadvantage a disabled person. The employer cannot justify the failure to make a reasonable adjustment where the duty arises.

The duty to make reasonable adjustments applies to all aspects of employment

recruitment and selection
at work
performance, training and development
redundancy, discipline, pensions and references etc.

Reasonable adjustments are practical solutions which will remove the disadvantage for you. There are no hard and fast rules about what is 'reasonable' as this will vary for individuals as well as for different organisations.

Try to be clear in your own mind about what disadvantages you face in doing your job and what steps could be taken to resolve these difficulties. This should help you to negotiate the best solution for both yourself and your employer.

Examples of reasonable adjustments that might work:

making changes to premises for example moving your work station so you are not easily distracted
giving some of your duties to another employee
allowing absences during working hours for doctor and hospital appointments including therapy
allowing you to work flexible hours to overcome fatigue from medication
providing parking places close to work to help you manage anxiety attacks
providing training for staff on schizophrenia or other mental health impairments to remove attitudinal barriers
providing increased support, supervision or mentoring.

The DDA does, however give employers some guidance to help them decide whether or not a particular adjustment is reasonable.

Downloads What Employees and Job Applicants Need to Know - Revised
Year:2006 (190kb, 600kb, 31 pages)

Your rights when accessing services and premises

The DDA gives you rights when you use services like the library, a restaurant, the bank and the local doctors' surgery. It does not matter if the service is provided for free or for a cost. This also means you have the right to equal treatment when accessing health and social care. There are special rules about what is considered a service to the public.

The DDA makes it unlawful to discriminate against a disabled person by:

refusing to provide a service without justification
providing a service of a lesser standard without justification
providing a service on worse terms without justification
failing to make reasonable adjustments to the way services are provided
failing to make reasonable adjustments to physical features.

You also have rights when buying, renting land or property and in relation to housing lists not to be discriminated against because of your disability. It is unlawful for a person managing any premises to discriminate against a disabled person occupying those premises. This includes harassment.

A service provider can justify treating a disabled person less favourably and/or failing to make a reasonable adjustment only if one or more of the relevant conditions are satisfied and it is reasonable in all the circumstances of the case for that person to hold that opinion. The conditions specified are health and safety, incapacity to contract, unable to provide the service, greater cost of providing the service and enabling the service provider to provide the service to the disabled person or other members of the public.

Downloads Detailed information on your duties as a service provider DDA Code of Practice - Rights of Access to Goods, Facilities, Services and Premises
Year: 2003 (800kb)
A guide for everybody - Revised
Year: 2006 Disability Discrimination Law (525kb, 31 pages)

Your rights in school

If you are covered by the definition of disability, then you have rights at school. The disability discrimination legislation for education is called the Special Education Needs and Disability (Northern Ireland) Order 2005 (SENDO). It is important to differentiate between what are your rights under the special educational needs framework and what are you rights under the disability discrimination duties. You may wish to contact the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland to clarify this complex issue.

SENDO states that responsible bodies (Boards of Governors or proprietors) have a legal duty not to discriminate against disabled pupils or prospective pupils in all aspects of school life, including the following areas:

The provision of education and associated services
Admissions
Expulsions

Examples of the range of activities that may be covered by the term 'education and associated services' include:

preparation for entry to the school
admission arrangements
the curriculum
teaching and learning
classroom organisation
timetabling
homework
access to school facilities
after school clubs and activities provided by schools to their own pupils
school sports
school policies
breaks and lunchtimes
the serving of school meals
interaction with peers
assessment and exam arrangements
school discipline and sanctions
suspension / expulsion procedures
school clubs and activities
school trips
work experience
counselling services
medical support
preparation for the next phase of education

This is not an exhaustive list. SENDO does not change the way an assessment of additional educational support for a pupil is carried out, or how a statement of the help required is made, reviewed or changed.

Downloads Further information Summary guide to Disability Discrimination duties for the Schools Sector
Year: 2006 (1.8mb, 300kb, 36 pages)
Disability Discrimination Code of Practice for Schools
Year: 2006 (10mb, 720kb, 170 pages)

Your rights in further and higher education

If you have mental health difficulties then you have rights in further and higher education. The Disability Discrimination legislation for education is called the Special Education Needs and Disbility (Northern Ireland) Order 2005 (SENDO). There are different types of discrimination in further and higher education than in schools.

Students in further and higher education have protection against the following types of discrimination:

Direct
Disability
Failure to make a reasonable adjustments
Harassment
Victimisation.

Direct discrimination cannot be justified. Special rules apply in circumstances where disability discrimination results from the application of a competency standard. The competency standard is complex and you will find further information in the publication titled Changes to SENDO in relation to further and higher education.

Downloads Changes to SENDO in relation to further and higher education (from 1 September 2006) - Briefing document
Year: 2006

Information and Support

There are a number of organisations who have produced materials and resources about your rights under DDA with mental health and here is a small selection. Please contact us if you have information about other useful sites and we will consider your request (Contact by e-mail).

Northern Ireland
This is list of mental health charities that offer help and support to people with mental health impairments in NI.

Student Organisations
www.studentmentalhealth.org

Children and Young People
www.lifebytes.gov.uk |
www.youngminds.org.uk |

Information for Employers

What is a disability?

The DDA defines a disabled person as a person with 'a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities'.

However, anyone who has an impairment including one resulting from a mental illness will still need to meet the requirements of the definition as set out, in order to demonstrate that they have a disability under the Act.

mobility
manual dexterity
physical coordination
continence
ability to lift, carry or otherwise move everyday objects
speech, hearing or eyesight
memory or ability to concentrate, learn or understand perception of the risk of physical danger.

To obtain protection under the DDA a person has to demonstrate that their impairment lasted for at least 12 months, is likely to last for at least that period, is likely to last for the rest of the person's life or is recurrent.

If a person is being treated with medication to control or alleviate their impairment then the DDA disregards this and the person is still treated as being disabled for the purposes of the DDA.

impairments with fluctuating or recurring effects such as myalgic encephalitis (ME)/chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, depression and epilepsy;
progressive such as motor neurone disease, muscular dystrophy, dementia and lupus(SLE);
developmental, such as autistic spectrum disorder, dyslexia and dyspraxia;
learning difficulties;
mental health conditions and mental illness such as depression, schizophrenia, eating disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, bipolar affective disorders, personality disorder and self harm behaviour
produced by injury to the body or brain.

The DDA also applies to people who have experienced mental ill health in the past. The courts ultimately decide who meets the statutory definition.

Downloads DDA fact sheet on definition
DDA booklet on definition
Statutory Guidance on matters to be taken into account in determining questions relating to definition of disability

What are reasonable adjustments in employment for people with mental ill health

It is often easier to make reasonable adjustments for people with a visible or physical disability. Mental health survivors and people with mental health impairments may require reasonable adjustments to get the job done. Some people may never require any adjustments, others may require more at different times. Reasonable adjustments are individual to the person.

Reasonable adjustments are practical solutions which will remove the disadvantage for the disabled person. There are no hard and fast rules about what is 'reasonable' as this will vary for individuals as well as for different organisations.

Harassment and victimisation are also provisions within the law.

Here are some examples of reasonable adjustments that might work:

making changes to premises for example moving their work station so they are not easily distracted
giving some of their duties to another employee
allowing absences during working hours for doctor and hospital appointments including therapy
allowing them to work flexible hours to overcome fatigue from medication
providing parking places close to work to help people manage anxiety attacks
providing training for staff on schizophrenia or other mental health impairments to remove attitudinal barriers
providing increased support, supervision or mentoring for people with mental ill health.

Failure to make a reasonable adjustment can never be justified. What is reasonable depends on a number of factors including:

How effective the adjustment is in preventing the disadvantage
How practical it is
The financial and other costs and the extent of any disruption
The extent of the employer's financial or other resources
The availability to the employer of financial or other assistance to make the adjustment
The size and type of business.

Financial assistance is available to employers from the access to work scheme in the local job centre.

Downloads Overview of employers' duties - Fact Sheet 6 - Revised
Year:2006
For detailed information Employment and Occupation - Disability Code of Practice
Year 2005

Where can I go for information and support?

Contact the enquiry line for the Equality Commission for NI for information on disability discrimination.

This is list of mental health charities that offer help and support to people with mental health impairments in Northern Ireland.

Other organisations which have produced information and resources for employers on DDA and mental health.
Employers Forum on Disability (NI) |
Employers Forum for Disability |
Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development |

We have also included a list of resources from Great Britain, however be aware that the dates for the implementation of the law are different as this is now a devolved matter for the Northern Ireland Assembly. The DRC, the Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health, National Institute for Mental Health in England and other mental health and employment experts have compiled a list of good practice resources and useful information for employers about mental health.

Downloads: Download this document in Word format
Download this document in pdf format

Information for schools and colleges

What is a disability?

The DDA defines a disabled person as a person with 'a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities'.

mobility
manual dexterity
physical coordination
continence
ability to lift, carry or otherwise move everyday objects
speech, hearing or eyesight
memory or ability to concentrate, learn or understand perception of the risk of physical danger.

If a person is being treated with medication to control or alleviate their impairment then the DDA disregards this and the person is still treated as being disabled for the purposes of the DDA.

A disability can arise from wide range of impairments such as:

impairments with fluctuating or recurring effects such as myalgic encephalitis (ME)/chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, depression and epilepsy;
progressive such as motor neurone disease, muscular dystrophy, dementia and lupus(SLE);
developmental, such as autistic spectrum disorder, dyslexia and dyspraxia;
learning difficulties

Discrimination in education

A new law relating to disability discrimination in education came into effect on the 1 September 2005. The new law is called the Special Educational Needs and Disability (Northern Ireland) Order 2005 (also known as SENDO).

The law applies to schools, Education and Library Boards, universities and colleges including teacher training and agricultural colleges. It is important to note there has been an amendment to the further and higher education section of SENDO in September 2006.

Pupils and prospective pupils can not be less favourably treated in all aspects of school life including the following areas:

the provision of education and associated services (school lunches, after school clubs, school trips etc)
admissions and
expulsions

SENDO does not change the way an assessment of additional educational support for a pupil is carried out, or how a statement of the help required is made, reviewed or changed as this carried out under separate legislation.

What are reasonable adjustments for students with mental ill health

Under SENDO, education providers in further and higher education have an anticipatory duty to make reasonable adjustments to meet the needs of disabled students.

Further and higher education colleges have to make reasonable adjustments to:

a provision, criterion or practice, other than a competency standard, is applied by or on behalf of a responsible body,
if it is a provision, criterion or practice relating to-
the arrangements for determining admissions to the institution, or
to student services provided for, or offered to, students by the responsible body, and
that the provision, criterion or practice placed disabled persons at a substantial disadvantage in comparison with persons who are not disabled.

It is the duty of the responsible body to take steps as are reasonable, in all the circumstances of the case, to prevent the provision, criterion or practice having that effect. The reasonable adjustment duty also applies to the physical features of premises.

One very important substantive change to the reasonable adjustment duty as a result of the Regulations is that it will no longer be possible for a responsible body to justify a failure to comply with the duty. Therefore, where the duty arises, all reasonable steps must be taken to fulfil it and a failure to do so will not be capable of being justified.

There are a number of long term health conditions that may interfere with a student's ability to participate fully in university life - attending lectures and tutorials, completing assignments and examinations etc. Some examples of reasonable adjustments:

Some examples of reasonable adjustments could include the:

change of lecture to an accessible location
extended time at examinations and for assignments
providing a student with a note taker
adjusting policies on deadlines for assignments if the student has been off ill
reasonable time off for treatment.

Downloads: Overview of the Special Educational Needs and Disability Order (NI) 2005 - Fact Sheet 11
Year: 2005
Summary guide to Disability Discrimination duties for the Schools Sector
Year: 2006
Changes to SENDO in relation to further and higher education (from 1 September 2006) - Briefing document
Year: 2006

More information and support

There are a number of publications in the publications section of the main Equality Commission website. www.equalityni.org |
www.skillni.org.uk |

Information for service providers and housing

What is a disability?

The DDA defines a disabled person as a person with 'a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities'.

Mobility
manual dexterity
physical coordination
continence
ability to lift, carry or otherwise move everyday objects
speech, hearing or eyesight
memory or ability to concentrate, learn or understand perception of the risk of physical danger.

If a person is being treated with medication to control or alleviate their impairment then the DDA disregards this and the person is still treated as being disabled for the purposes of the DDA.

A disability can arise from wide range of impairments such as:

impairments with fluctuating or recurring effects such as myalgic encephalitis (ME)/chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, depression and epilepsy;
progressive such as motor neurone disease, muscular dystrophy, dementia and lupus(SLE);
developmental, such as autistic spectrum disorder, dyslexia and dyspraxia;
learning difficulties.

Changes to service provision

If you are disabled person and you think you have been discriminated against in trying to use a service, for example a shop or a bank, you may want to do something about it. All service providers are covered by the DDA, large and small, private and public sector, whether the service is free or paid for. This includes, but is not limited to services and facilities such as:

shops and restaurants;
banks and building societies;
doctors and dentist surgeries;
bus and railway stations;
insurance companies;
churches and other places of worship; and
Hotels and guest houses etc.

Some services are excluded from Part 3 of the DDA. 'These are:

Education and some services closely related to education. However, these areas are covered by the Special Educational Needs and Disability (Northern Ireland) Order'2005 (SENDO) and by Part 4 of the DDA (SENDA) in Great Britain.
Transport: Bus stations, train station and airports are covered. 'The means of transport are not. However, they will be covered under new regulations, the Disability Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order 2006
Clubs: refer to the Disability Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order 2006
Some services such as insurance provision or financial services which involve deposits and guarantees also have special rules.

It is unlawful for service providers to discriminate against a disabled person by:

Refusing to provide (or deliberately not providing) any service. An example would be a general practice surgery refused a person with mental ill health a place on the surgery list
Providing service of a lower standard or in a worse manner, this would cover things like harassment of disabled customers, or being offhand or rude towards you.
Providing service on worse terms. For example, someone with bipolar disorder is booking a holiday. The travel agent asks him for a larger deposit than required from other customers after seeing the declaration of mental health on the insurance. The travel agent believes, without good reason, that because of his disability he is more likely to cancel his holiday. This is likely to be unlawful.

Service providers also have to make reasonable adjustments to enable you to use their services. In fact they have an anticipatory duty which means they have to consider adjustments before you use their services. That includes providing extra help or making changes to their premises to help people with mobility problems for example. Another example would be ensuring people can give their medical details in private at a reception area in a general practice.

Insurance might be a particular concern. There are special rules about this in the DDA. For example, if you apply for life insurance, holiday, private health insurance or car insurance, you cannot be refused or have worse terms applied to you unless the company bases this on reliable and relevant information and acts reasonably having looked at all the relevant factors.

Insurers cannot rely on untested assumptions or stereotypes or generalisations. So it might be reasonable for a life insurance company to refuse someone with mental ill health life insurance if they base that decision on clear medical evidence that the person has been diagnosed as a risk to themselves. On the other hand if someone has a type of mental ill health which all the statistical evidence and medical evidence shows is either curable or manageable then an insurer could be acting unlawfully by refusing insurance or indeed by making you pay an additional premium.

In October 2004, rules known as the physical features duties of the DDA became law. These rules mean that service providers have to take reasonable steps to overcome physical barriers which stop, or make it difficult for, disabled people using a service.

Further information is available in the following booklets

Downloads: A Guide For Everybody - Revised
Disability Discrimination Act-What Service Providers Need to Know - Revised
FAQs

Where can I go for more information and support?

You can contact the enquiry line in the Equality Commission for NI

This is list of mental health charities that offer help and support to people with mental health impairments in Northern Ireland.

Other organisations which may assist you are listed in the publication What service providers need to know

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