Equal Opportunities

The University of Manchester and S.A.L.V.E. (Support and Love Via Education) International are committed to equal opportunities and are promoting this opportunity and recruiting student volunteers in line with University policies, S.A.L.V.E.'s policies and UK Equal Opportunities legislation (the Equality Act 2010). We are committed to supporting all eligible students to apply for this opportunity.

It is important to be aware that, like several other countries around the world, Uganda is a country which does not have the same stance on equal opportunities as we are used to in the UK. We encourage all applicants to consider the Ugandan country context, in particular the legal and cultural context, in relation to characteristics that are protected under the Equality Act 2010 in the UK (age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity race, religion and belief, sex and sexual orientation) but that are subject to different attitudes and laws in Uganda.

Our guidance ‘Travelling Overseas with a Protected Characteristic’aims to raise awareness of health and safety implications and potential complications that students who have one or more of the protected characteristics set out above may encounter when undertaking overseas travel on behalf of the University.

We have procedures in place to support travellers to Uganda to minimise risks and potential issues associated with the characteristics outlined above as far as possible. However, whilst an individual might be very comfortable in a particular equality group that is ‘protected’ in the UK, even expressing this in some countries could have serious consequences. It is therefore up to the individual to assess the risks and make a decision on whether to travel.

If you have any questions about this you can contact the Volunteering Team on volunteers@manchester.ac.uk or the Equality and Diversity Team equalityanddiversity@manchester.ac.uk for an informal conversation. All communication will remain confidential.