Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Report - 2024-2025

Our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion

In 2023/2024 we agreed our equality objectives for 2023-2026 which seeks to   eliminate discrimination, harassment and victimisation, to promote inclusion and equality of opportunity, and to foster good relations among our staff and communities. This extends to people who identify with one or more of the following protected characteristics (*priority characteristics):  

• Age  
• Disability*  
• Gender reassignment  
• Marriage and civil partnership  
• Pregnancy and maternity  
• Race*
• Religion and belief  
• Sex*
• Sexual orientation  

What does our equality report include?  

Our equality report is divided into three sections:  

Section 1 provides a summary of our EDI strategy and provides a profile of the population we serve.

Section 2 focuses on our staff and includes details on our staff survey results and Workforce Race Equality Standard progress and our completed Workforce Disability Equality Standard results.  

Section 3 focuses on our patients and includes feedback on their views of our services, and our recording of those with communication needs.  

Appendices provide more detailed data about our workforce and patients.

Section 1

Our equality, diversity and inclusion strategy

To ensure that we are considering EDI in everything we do at First Community, the EDI strategy has been linked to our Strategic Plan and our organizational behaviours framework.

This Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Strategy outlines First Community's commitment to cultivating a culture of inclusion and ensuring a diverse and empowered workforce. Through collaborative efforts and transparent reporting, we aim to build an organisation that reflects and celebrates the rich tapestry of our communities while delivering exceptional care and support to all.

The EDI Vision, EDI Mission and EDI values link to First Community's Strategic Plan in several ways:

• The EDI Vision supports everyone to achieve their potential
• The EDI Mission supports First Community to deliver outstanding local NHS healthcare
• The EDI Values link up to our First Community Behaviours Framework  
• The EDI Strategy helps First Community to deliver the values First rate care, First rate people, First rate value through four key themes of Enhancing Workforce Diversity and Recruitment, Workforce Planning and Retention, Transparency in reporting and Wellbeing.  

By taking this approach we can be sure that the strategic objectives link throughout the organisation so we can ensure we meet our objectives. This is what First Community refer to as the purple thread.  

EDI Vision:  

First Community Health and Care (First Community) envisions a workplace that embraces diversity, fosters inclusion, and provides equal opportunities for all. We strive to create a just, safe, and respectful environment where everyone can bring their whole authentic selves, ensuring excellent care and well-being for citizens and service users in our community.

EDI Mission:  

Our mission is to proactively promote and embed Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) principles into every aspect of First Community's operations. We are committed to attracting and retaining a talented and diverse workforce, empowering individuals and teams to make confident decisions, and providing care that meets the unique needs of our diverse communities.

EDI Values:

• Inclusive: We celebrate diversity and strive to build an inclusive culture where every individual is valued, respected, and treated fairly
• Transparent and Accountable: We uphold the highest standards of ethical behaviour, accountability, and transparency in our EDI practices
• Collaborative: We work collaboratively with all stakeholders to drive positive change and promote EDI across the organisation 
• Kind: We show empathy, understanding, and kindness to create an environment of care and support for all
• Continuously improving: We continuously seek innovative solutions to eliminate barriers and promote equality of opportunity
• Positive: We foster a positive and uplifting atmosphere that encourages growth, learning, and mutual encouragement for all our staff
• Empowering: We empower individuals to embrace their unique strengths and perspectives, fostering a sense of ownership and pride in their contributions. 

EDI Implementation and Monitoring:

Our Equality Diversity and inclusion Group (EDIG), will oversee the implementation of the EDI Action Plan.  Each year we report on the NHS Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES), the NHS Workforce Disability Standard (WDES) and the Gender Pay Gap which are approved by our Board People Committee.

Our population  

Protected characteristic highlights at a glance.

First Community predominately delivers services in east Surrey covered by Reigate and Banstead and Tandridge District Council areas, a population of 238,800. We also deliver some services into West Sussex and across the rest of Surrey. 

Reigate and Banstead

Tandridge

The population of Reigate and Banstead increased by 9.5%, from around 137,800 in 2011 to 150,900 in 2021.  The proportion of people aged 65 and over increased from 19.7% to 22.4%, while the proportion of people aged under 15 decreased from 19.9% to 18.8%. Between the last two censuses, the average (median) age of Reigate and Banstead increased by one year, from 40 to 41 years of age.  The ethnic diversity of Reigate and Banstead increased significantly, with the proportion of people who identified as White British decreasing from 90.6% to 84.4%, and the proportion of people who identified as Asian increasing from 5.1% to 7.5%. In 2021, 3.7% of usual residents identified their ethnic group within the Mixed or Multiple ethnic group category, increasing from 2.2% in 2011. Those who identified as Black, Black British, Black Welsh, Caribbean or African increased from 1.6% in 2011 to 2.9% in 2021.   In 2021, 49.1% of people in Reigate and Banstead described themselves as Christian (down from 61.9%), while 6.0% did not state their religion (down from 7.4% the decade before). 38.1% stated they had 'No religion'.   The health of Reigate and Banstead residents improved slightly, with the proportion of people who reported their health as very good or good increasing from 82.6% to 84%, and the proportion of people who reported their health as bad or very bad decreasing from 4.8% to 4.2%. Generally, their health is better than the England average. In 2021, 8.4% of Reigate and Banstead residents did not identify with any national identity associated with the UK. This figure increased from 6.7% in 2011. In 2021, just under 1 in 11 people (8.9%) were identified as being disabled and limited a little, compared with 8.4% in 2011. The proportion of Reigate and Banstead residents who were not disabled increased from 85.2% to 85.6%. Caution should be taken when making comparisons between 2011 and 2021 because of changes in question wording and response options.

The population of Tandridge increased by 5.9%, from 83,000 to 87,900 people.  The proportion of people aged 65 and over increased from 19.7% to 22.4%, while the proportion of people aged under 15 decreased from 19.9% to 18.8%. Between the last two censuses, the average (median) age of Tandridge increased by one year, from 43 to 44 years of age.  The ethnic diversity of Tandridge increased over recent years, with the proportion of people who identified as White British decreasing from 93.8% to 89.4%, and the proportion of people who identified as Asian increasing from 2.6% to 3.7%. In 2021, 3.8% of usual residents in Tandridge identified their ethnic group within the Mixed or Multiple ethnic group category, increasing from 2.2% in 2011. Those who identified as Black, Black British, Black Welsh, Caribbean or African increased from 1.1% in 2011 to 3.8% in 2021.   In 2021, 51.2% of people in Tandridge described themselves as Christian (down from 64.9%), while 6.4% did not state their religion (down from 7.5% the decade before). 38.9% stated they had 'No religion'.   The health of Tandridge residents improved slightly, with the proportion of people who reported their health as very good or good increasing from 82.6% to 84.0%, and the proportion of people who reported their health as bad or very bad decreasing from 4.8% to 4.2%. Generally, their health is better than the England average.   In 2021, 5.1% of Tandridge residents did not identify with any national identity associated with the UK. This figure increased from 4.4% in 2011.   In 2021, just under 1 in 11 people (8.9%) were identified as being disabled and limited a little, compared with 8.5% in 2011. The proportion of Tandridge residents who were not disabled increased from 85.1% to 85.5%. Caution should be taken when making comparisons between 2011 and 2021 because of changes in question wording and response options.

East Surrey

Population is growing & changing: More people are moving into the area than leaving. Our population is changing over time and makes it more important to keep refreshing our understanding of their needs. Ethnicity: the population is becoming more ethnically diverse without there being particularly large communities of any one ethnic minority. This means our services need to be able to respond to diversity rather the gain a deeper understanding of particular communities. The number of people who identify as Gypsy, Roma and Travellers in is significantly higher in east Surrey significantly than the national average - we were proud to have services that aimed to better meet the needs of these communities during 2024/5. Ethnic diversity varies by age within East Surrey with over 65's being significantly more likely to identify as white British.  Religion and belief: About two thirds of east Surrey's population are Christian, whilst a substantial proportion has no religion. For those who have a religion other than Christian, Muslim and Hindu are the largest religions.  Sexual orientation: It is estimated there are over 23,000 people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) in the area. We know that the proportion of people identifying as LGBT is increasing, particularly for 15-25 year olds   Age: in east Surrey there are less people aged 15-34 than the national average and more people aged 35 and over than average including those over 85. There are also more children 0-15.  Disability: Around 18% of the population consider themselves to have a disability nationally and this compares to 14.6% in East Surrey. Within this, the number of people with a learning disability in east Surrey is expected to increase to 4.9%, up from 2.4%, in the next five years.

Source: Public Health England Health Profiles 2021 & 2017, Census 2021  

Our workforce    

Protected characteristics highlights at a glance  

First Community employed 552 staff on 31 March 2025. Below are highlights for each protected characteristic drawn from the full data provided in Appendix 2. 

Protected Characteristic	Diversity Scorecard Analysis 31 March 2025
Age	The largest age group employed at First Community is the 45-46 age group (15.8%). In 2020 the largest age group was 51-55. 39% of our workforce are over the age of 51 (compared to 40% in 2020)
Disability	95.2% of our workforce report if they have a disability (up from 91.6% in 2020) 8.2% of the workforce have declared 'yes' to a disability (up from 4.6% in 2023)   4% of leavers were disabled
Ethnic Origin	96.7% of our workforce report their ethnicity (up from 92.3% in 2020) 71.1% of the workforce is White British. 15.6% of the workforce is BAME (up from 9% in 2020, 12.8% in 2023)   20% of leavers during the period identified as BAME.   15% of the Board identified as BAME
Religion or Belief	Belief 82.4 % of our workforce choose to disclose their religion or belief (up from 78% in 2020)  Religious belief of our workforce broadly reflects our population although a higher proportion are atheists
Sex	87.1% of our workforce identified as female 12.9% identified as male
Sexual Orientation	90.4% of our workforce report their sexual orientation (up from 80.9% in 2020)  88% of our workforce identify their sexual orientation as Heterosexual 2% identified as gay, lesbian or bisexual (with 9.6% choosing not to disclose.
Pregnancy and Maternity	100% of our workforce who went on maternity leave returned to the organisation

Source: Electronic Staff Records.

Staff Survey  

We are grateful to all our staff who complete the annual staff survey sharing their individual experiences of working in First Community.

 We used the results to understand what we are doing well and where we need to make improvements.  

In 2024, 67% of our staff took part in the staff survey compared to 62% in the wider NHS community services.

Highlights from our staff survey:  

Domain	Compared to wider NHS	Statistically significant change compared to 2023
Compassionate and Inclusive	Best	Higher
Recognised and rewarded	Best	Not significant
Have a voice that counts	Best	Not significant
Safe and Healthy	Best	Higher
Always Learning	Best	Not significant
Work Flexibly	Best	Not significant
We are a team	Best	Higher
Staff engagement	Best	Not significant
Morale	Best	Not significant

A full breakdown of the staff survey results for 2024 is available at: Results | Working to improve NHS staff experiences | NHS Staff Survey (nhsstaffsurveys.com) 

In the NHS staff survey there are 101 questions, one particularly important question which is a proxy for overall staff satisfaction Would you recommend my organization as a place to work? .  For some protected characteristics we are able to compare internally and with similar organisations. 

	Internal differences	Compared average score in similar organisations
Race	BAME colleagues scored higher than white colleagues	All colleagues scored better than staff in other organisations.
Disability	Colleagues with long standing health conditions scored lower than colleagues without a disability	All colleagues scored better than staff in other organisations.
Sex	Female colleagues scored lower than male colleagues	Data not available
Sexuality	LGBTQ+ colleagues scored the same as other colleagues	Data not available
Age	Colleagues under 30 and 5165 scored lower than  other colleagues	Under 30's scored worse than staff in other organisations  51-65's scored better than staff in other organisations.

 

Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES)  

The Workforce Race Equality Standard allows us to track progress over time and compare ourselves with the wider NHS. It looks at key areas to highlight any variation in experiences between BAME staff and white staff in a number of indicators. First Community undertakes WRES each year and we use this data to inform what actions we need to take.  

• There are still internal differences between BAME and white colleagues  
• Over the last Five years we have seen a significant improvement in most of the areas covered by the WRES  
• There has been an increase in BAME colleagues in the higher bands (Band 7 and above)  
• The gap between likelihood of BAME and white candidates being appointed and closed, with no statistical differences
• BAME staff are still more likely to experience bullying harassment and abuse in the workplace, although our 2024 report showed no difference.
• Our full Workforce Race Equality Standard submission is available to download here.

 

Workforce Disability Equality Standard (WDES)

It is not a statutory requirement for First Community to submit the WDES, we have completed the standard for internal review and publish on our website since 2023. This analysis and report have been compiled to ensure that the EDI work is informed by all the data available, helping to support and steer our EDI agenda.  It provides us with a ability to compare the experience of our disabled colleagues with NHS organisations. 

• Over the last 5 years the responses to the NHS Staff survey questions that our included in the WDES have fluctuated and show no sustained internal improvement i.e. disabled staff report a worse experience at work compared to other staff in First Community.
• Disabled staff in First Community report a better experience that disable staff in NHS Trusts
• Significantly more staff disclose a disability in the staff survey (anonymous) compared to those that declare a disability to us an employer.  Our internal reporting has improved over the last 5 years and is better than NHS organisations.
• Internal reporting of disability is important for WDES reporting as it provides the data for the some of the metrics used and therefore low declaration rates impact on data quality.
• Our data shows staff with disabilities are more likely than staff without a declared disability to be appointed from shortlisting.
• Our full WDES report is available to download from our website.

 

Gender Pay Gap Report 

Our organisation is committed to promoting equality and diversity in the workplace, and to closing the gender pay gap. We have published our gender pay gap data for the year 2024, as required by the Equality Act 2010.  

Our gender pay gap data shows that:

• The mean (average) gender pay gap is 3.5%, which means that on average, women earn 3.5% less than men per hour. This is a decrease of 3.1% from last year, when the mean gender pay gap was 6.6%.
• The median (middle) gender pay gap is -3.3%, which means that the middle-paid woman earns 3.3% more than the middle-paid man per hour.  

Our gender pay gap report is available to download on our website. 

Objective 1

To develop inclusive and compassionate leaders to support a diverse and representative workforce to continue to deliver outstanding care to meet the individual needs of our patients and communities.  

Measures of success:  

1. Improvement in WRES/ WDES indictors
2. Staff Survey staff family and friends test question
3. Representative staff survey response across protected characteristic  

Progress in 2024/25

1. We have made sustained improvement in WRES indicators
2. Our staff survey shows better than average overall staff satisfaction for all staff group except age (under 30's)
3. Our staff survey has been representative of our workforce

Priorities for improvement:

1. Improving the experience of our disabled colleagues as measured by the WDES indicators
2. Further improving internal disability declaration rates as measured by closing the gap between staff survey and the internal reporting.

 

 

Our patients and service users

Our population protected characteristics at a glance  

First Community supported 40,834 patients and service users between 1st April 2022 to 31st March 2023. Below are the highlights for each protected characteristic drawn from the full data provided in appendix 3.  

Protected characteristic	Diversity analysis for 2022/2023
Age	The largest age group of patients seen during 2024/25 were under 10 years old (19.8%)  30.2% of patients were over 70 years of age Due to the nature of the services we provide, we would expect a higher proportion of our patients to be children or older people
Race	68.6% of patients had their ethnicity recorded.  10.9 % of our patients were from a BAME background. Which is slightly higher than our population, which may be explained by the high number of children seen by our services (younger people in East Surrey are more likely to be from a BAME background)  The largest BAME patient group being from an Asian background (3.7%) which reflects the population in our 2 main borough council population areas
Religion or belief	31.93% of patients disclosed their religion or belief, with the majority of these patients being of a Christian denomination  The second largest proportion of patients were Muslim followed by Hindu.
Sex	58% of our patients were female   42% of our patients were male This is due to the higher proportion of mothers registered as patients for our health visiting services and the longer life expectancy of women which impacts on the services we provide to older people.

Source: EMIS, electronic patient records 

 

What people say about our services

Friends and Family Test  

The Friends and Family Test is standard set of questions used by all NHS Trusts and many other organisations delivering NHS services. It enables organisation one way of measuring how satisfied people are with the services that we provide at First Community. 

When people are asked to complete this they asked to provide demographic so we can look at differences. We are not able look at all the protected characteristics but for those we can no significant or worrying differences were noted. The is a 2% difference between male and female respondents; very few men responded to the survey which meant the statistical significance of this response could not be confirmed. 

The table below shows our Friends and Family Test results from 2024/25 and splits it into some of the protected characteristics and suggest little difference in the in satisfaction scores between different groups: 

	% likely to recommend (high score is good)
National Benchmark	94.%
First Community overall	95.7%
Male	94.4%
Female	96.4%
BAME	96.4%
Disabled	95.7%

Source: iWantGreatcare 

Complaints  

There were 20 formal complaints in total for 2024/2025. The protected characteristics data we have available for these complaints can be seen below.

Protected characteristic	Number of complaints
Sex	Female: 11 Male: 9
Ethnicity	White British: 13 BAME:  2     Unknown: 5
Age	0-19: 5 20-39: 2 40-59: 4 60-79: 6 80+: 3 Unknown: 2

None of the complaints for 24/25 were directly related to discrimination.

Source: iWantGreatcare 

 

EDI Objective 2 - our population 

All changes and improvements made to our services are taken with the needs of our population (using population health management insights) with meaningful consideration given to improve or address health inequalities.

Measures of success:

1. Improvement in WRES/ WDES indictors  
2. Staff Survey staff family and friends test question  
3. Representative staff survey response across protected characteristic.

 

 

Appendix 1  

Workforce data for each protected characteristic  

Table 1a &b : Age

Workforce by age

Age band	Headcount	% of staff by headcount
<=20 Years	0	0%
21-25	12	2.2%
26-30	62	11.2%
31-35	69	12.5%
36-40	69	15.8%
41-45	87	14.1%
46-50	87	15.8%
51-55	78	14.1%
56-60	85	15.4%
61-65	43	7.8%
66-70	10	1.8%
>=71 Years	24	0.7%
Grand total	552	100%

 

Leavers by age

Age band	Headcount	% of leavers
<=20 Years	0	0%
21-25	3	5.6%
26-30	7	13.2%
31-35	4	7.5%
36-40	2	3.8%
41-45	12	22.6%
46-50	7	13.2%
51-55	2	3.8%
56-60	7	13.2%
61-65	7	13.2%
66-70	4	7.5%
>=71 Years	0	0%
Grand total	53	100%

 

Table 1c and d: Disability

Workforce by disability

Disability	Headcount	% of staff by headcount
No	483	87%
Not Declared	21	3.8%
Prefer Not To Answer	2	0.4%
Unspecified	1	0.2%
Yes	45	8.2%
Grand total	552	100%

 

Leavers (excluding TUPE) by disability

Disability	Headcount	% of leavers
No	48	91%
Not Declared	3	6%
Prefer Not To Answer	0	0%
Unspecified	0	0%
Yes	2	4%
Grand total	53	100%

 

Table 1e,f&g: Ethnicity

 Workforce by Ethnic Origin

Ethnic Origin	Headcount	% of staff by headcount
A White - British	396	71.1%
B White - Irish	7	1.3%
C White - Any other White background	36	6.5%
D Mixed - White & Black Caribbean	1	0.2%
E Mixed - White & Black African	1	0.2%
F Mixed - White & Asian	1	0.2%
G Mixed - Any other mixed background	6	1.1%
H Asian or Asian British - Indian	5	4.5%
L Asian or Asian British - Any other Asian background	12	2.2%
M Black or Black British - Caribbean	8	1.4%
N Black or Black British - African	30	5.4%
P Black or Black British - Any other Black background	2	0.4%
PD Black British	2	0.4%
S Any Other Ethnic Group	2	0.4%
Unspecified	18	3.3%
Z Not Stated
Grand Total	552	100%

 

Workforce by Ethnic Origin

Ethnic Origin	Reigate & Banstead (2021 Census)	Tandridge (2021 Census)	First Community Patients (excluding not recorded)	First Community Staff
White	84.4%	89.4%	89.1%	78.9%
Asian, Asian British or Asian Welsh	7.5%	3.7%	5.3%	6.7%
Black, Black British, Black Welsh, Caribbean or African	2.9%	2.2%	3.1%	6.8%
Mixed or multiple ethnic groups	3.7%	3.8%	1.6%	1.7%
Other ethnic groups	1.4%	0.9%	0.9%	0.4%

First Community's workforce ethnicity broadly reflects the population of East Surrey.

First Community's patient profile closely reflects the population of East Surrey. 

 

Leavers by Ethnic Origin

Ethnic Origin	Headcount	% of leavers
A White - British	35	66%
B White - Irish	0	0%
C White - Any other White background	4	7.5%
D Mixed - White & Black Caribbean	1	1.9%
E Mixed - White & Black African	1	1.9%
F Mixed - White & Asian	2	3.7%
G Mixed - Any other mixed background	0	0%
H Asian or Asian British - Indian	2	3.7%
J Asian or Asian British - Pakistani	2	3.7%
L Asian or Asian British - Any other Asian background	0	0%
M Black or Black British - Caribbean	0	0%
N Black or Black British - African	2	3.7%
P Black or Black British - Any other Black background	1	1.9%
R Chinese	2	3.7%
S Any Other Ethnic Group	0	0%
Z Not Stated	0	0%
Unspecified	0	0%
Total	53	100%

 

Table 1h: Religion or belief

 

Workforce by Religion or belief

Religion or belief	Headcount	% of staff by headcount
Atheism	102	18.5%
Buddhism	2	0.4%
Christianity	300	54.3%
Hinduism	10	1.9%
Islam	6	1.2%
Judaism	1	0.2%
Not disclosed	97	17.6%
Other	34	6.2%
Grand total	552	100%

 

Table 1i: Gender

 

Workforce by Gender

Gender	WTE	% of staff by headcount
Female	400.76	87.1%
Male	59.04	12.9%
Grand total	459.8	100%

 

Leavers by Gender

Gender	Headcount	% of leavers
Female	44	83%
Male	9	17%
Grand Total	53	100%

 

Table 1j: Sexual Orientation

 

Workforce by sexual orientation

Sexual orientation	Headcount	% of staff by headcount
Bisexual	4	0.7%
Gay or Lesbian	7	1.3%
Hetrosexual or Straight	486	88%
Not disclosed	55	9.6%
Grand Total	552	100%

 

Pregnancy and maternity

100% return rate for staff who went on maternity leave and returned to work. Source for all data: Electronic Staff Records (ESR) and NHS Jobs data. 

Appendix 2

Patient data for each protected characteristic 

Table 2a: Age

Patient by age

Age group	Number	% of total
below 1	2109	6.9%
1-10	3945	12.9%
11-20	1364	4.4%
21-30	1769	5.8%
31-40	3163	10.3%
41-50	2325	7.6%
51-60	3205	10.4%
61-70	3599	11.7%
71-80	4231	13.8%
81-90	3607	11.8%
91-100	1335	4.4%
101-110	58	0.2%
Total	30710	100%

 

Table 2b: Ethnicity

 

Breakdown of patient by ethnicity

Table Caption

Ethnicity	Number	% of total
Asian	1143	3.7%
(largest Indian)	432
Black	649	2.1%
(largest - African)	466
Mixed	326	1.1%
Other ethnicity	181	0.6%
White - British	17113	55.7%
White - other	1651	5.4%
(largest - Irish)	162
Unknown	9647	31.4%
Total	30710	100%

 

Religion

 

Table 2c: Religion

Breakdown by religion

Religion	Number	% of total
Agnostic	193	0.6%
Atheist	255	.08%
Buddhist	23	0.1%
Christian	6095	19.8%
Hindu	149	0.5%
Jehovah's Witness	38	0.1%
Jewish	18	0.1%
Mormon	3	0.%
Muslim	306	1.0%
Nonconformist	13	0.0%
Quaker religion	1	0.0%
Sikh	20	0.1%
Unknown	23596	76.8%
Total	30710	100%

 

Table 2d: Sex

 

Breakdown by sex

Gender	Number	% of total
F	17752	57.8%
M	12959	42.2%
Total	30710	100%

 

Further Information and Feedback

 

If you would like to find out more about our services, please visit our website at:  www.firstcommunityhealthcare.co.uk  

If you would like this information in another format, for example large print or easy read, or if you need help communicating with us, please contact:  

First Community (Head Office)  

Call: 01737 775450  Email: fchc.enquiries@nhs.net  

Text: 07814 639034  

Facebook: @firstcommunityhcNHS  

Instagram: firstcommunityhealthandcare  

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