Collecting equality and diversity information
The GOsC collects information about the protected characteristics of osteopaths to better understand the diversity of the profession.
We ask osteopaths to complete an online diversity monitoring form with questions about their protected characteristics, such as age, ethnicity and disability.
In January 2026 this form will become part of the process for osteopaths to renew their registration, which means osteopaths will be asked questions about their protected characteristics, such as age, ethnicity and disability, when they come to renew their registration each year. Osteopaths will have the option to choose 'Prefer not to say’ for each question because we know providing this kind of personal information can feel unsettling or somewhat intrusive for some people.
Why we are asking for this information
It’s our legal duty:
- Collecting this information is something that the GOsC is obliged by law to do under the Public Sector Equality Duty, in an effort to eliminate unlawful discrimination, advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations between people who share and do not share specific characteristics. All other healthcare regulators also collect this information from their registrants for the same reason. The Health and Care Professions Council publishes data on the diversity of their professions registered by the Health and Care Professions Council and the General Medical Council does the same for doctors.
We want to be inclusive:
- Knowing the diversity of osteopaths will give us a better understanding of their needs and how our regulatory services, including our continuing professional development scheme, registration or fitness to practise processes can meet those needs and be inclusive for everyone.
- Knowing the diversity of the profession will also help us and our partners to demonstrate that osteopathy is welcoming and inclusive for all patients and students, or to think about how we might encourage greater diversity, because we know that more diverse professions can better meet the needs of their diverse patients.
We want to be fair:
- When we understand the diversity of osteopaths, we can identify and address how different groups in the profession are impacted by our policies, processes, and decisions. Without this information, it is difficult for us to confidently say that specific groups of osteopaths are being treated fairly.
How we will use this information
The diversity information we collect will be anonymised and used to inform our new annual Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging Report to show an overall picture of diversity across the profession. This report will be made available on our website. We will also use this information to comply with our legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010.
We want to be clear that we won’t share or use this personal diversity information for any other reason except the purposes we have mentioned above.
Who can see this diversity data?
Access to this information will be restricted to staff members involved in the processing and monitoring of this data. It will be used to provide statistical information only, and personal information will not be visible to any of our colleagues involved in our concerns process or fitness to practise proceedings, or external partners. We collect diversity equality data as part of our concerns process separately and for different purposes.
Please also note that, because this information is purely for the purposes of monitoring equality and diversity across the profession, any information osteopaths provide to us about disability or a health condition using this form is considered separate to their responsibility to notify the GOsC about a health condition or change in health that affects their ability to practise safely.
