These equality objectives and equality targets for NHS England for 2026/27 address our role as an NHS system leader, commissioner and our own role as an employer.
Equality objective 1 (elective reform)
Objective
To ensure that the equality and health inequality impacts of COVID-19 and key lessons learnt are fully considered and clear strategies are developed and implemented for the NHS workforce and patients of all ages as the NHS continues to move beyond the recovery phase.
To ensure that patient and workforce focused strategies reflect this and make an effective contribution to advancing equality for people of all ages by reference to protected characteristics and to reducing associated health inequalities.
Target 1
To advance the actions outlined in the elective reform plan, NHS England will identify and work to address inequalities within elective care through enhancing data collection and utilisation, reviewing patient transport options, and leveraging technology to ensure greater equity in managing patient pathways.
Equality objective 2 (capability)
Objective
To maintain and support the capability of NHS England to understand and address the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) legal obligations and the interface with the separate health inequalities duties.
Target 1
To maintain and support the capability of NHS England’s teams to understand and address the PSED’s legal obligations.
Equality objective 3 (information)
Objective
To improve the mapping, quality and extent of equality information to better facilitate compliance with the PSED in relation to patients and NHS service-users of all ages, NHS service delivery and the NHS workforce.
Target 1
To continue to work with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), Official of National Statistics, NHS arm’s length bodies, and other government bodies to identify how best to carry forward and oversee the work of the Unified Information Standard for Protected Characteristics Project and move to publish the reports.
Equality objective 4 (internal workforce)
Objective
To embed equality, diversity and inclusion within the DHSC-NHS England Transformation Programme and other related activity, such as the Improving NHS England Together programme, maximising opportunities for fairness and inclusivity for all colleagues, by reference to protected characteristics.
Target 1
To ensure that equality considerations are systematically built into the DHSC-NHS England Transformation Programme and other related work, such as the Improving NHS England Together programme, by applying robust equality impact assessments, enabling NHS England to identify and mitigate any risks to colleagues by reference to protected characteristics and take appropriate action.
Equality objective 5 (patient access and communication)
Objective
To improve access and reduce communication barriers experienced by individuals and groups of people of all ages, by reference to protected characteristics, who need NHS services.
New target 1
During 2026/27, NHS England will assess progress in implementing the revised Accessible Information Standard (AIS).
New target 2
During 2026/27, NHS England will support systems to improve equity for mothers and babies from ethnic minority groups and improve workforce race equality within maternity and neonatal services by encouraging systematic implementation and embedding of nationally agreed, evidence-informed equity interventions across maternity and neonatal services.
These interventions include the Perinatal Equity and Anti‑Discrimination Programme, the Maternal Care Bundle (which aims to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity and reduce inequalities), the maternity and neonatal equalities dashboard, equity-focused workforce initiatives and other planned equity actions.
Our work in 2026/27 will also address the recommendations of the final report of the Independent Investigation into Maternity and Neonatal Services in England, chaired by Baroness Amos, and the ongoing work of the National Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce, chaired by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care.
Equality objective 6 (system workforce)
Objective
To improve, by reference to protected characteristics, the recruitment, retention, progression, development and experience of staff in the NHS workforce.
Target 1
To continue to implement the high-impact actions (and their associated success metrics) included in the national NHS equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) improvement plan, seeking by 2026/27 to develop improvement trajectories for this programme.
Equality objective 7 (integrated care boards)
Objective
To work with integrated care boards (ICBs) to support their compliance with the Equality Act 2010’s PSED and the associated Specific Equality Duties (SEDs) taking due account of the NHS reform agenda and significant changes in relevant legislation.
Target
To continue to support ICBs to meet PSED and SED obligations as part of major NHS reform change programmes.
Equality objective 8 (system landscape)
Objective
To ensure that the equality objectives for NHS England address the relevant statutory functions, duties, powers and responsibilities of NHS England and address the NHS reform agenda and significant changes in relevant legislation.
Target 1
Working in partnership with the DHSC, to explore what arrangements will be made for the restructured DHSC to report on the objectives and targets set by NHS England for 2026/27.
Publication reference: PRN02408_ii