Equality Mainstreaming Report 2026

As a competent enforcement authority, we understand the importance of EDI as an organisational priority. We are committed to improving our policies and practices in order to combat discrimination at all levels. We aspire to not only to have a diverse highly skilled workforce representative of Scotland, but to provide an inclusive and accessible service to the Scottish population.    

We understand that we can always be improving our approach to mainstreaming equality. With this in mind, we created a working group established in November 2022 to oversee and progress the identified EDI actions. The group is made up of representatives from across the organisation and is chaired by a member of the HR team, with input from our leadership team. This ensures that every area of the organisation has a voice that will be heard. The purpose of the group is to:    

• Work to promote and further equality, diversity and inclusion across FSS. Members of the group will take action to drive and deliver equality and diversity activities and actions derived from Strategic and Corporate Plans and monitor progress of these as identified in the Equalities Mainstreaming Action tracker.  

Equality and Diversity is a golden thread which runs through the four Pillars of our People Strategy and is a key aspect of the employee experience at FSS. We will continue to promote EDI across our workforce in line with our organisational values of being Inclusive, Fair and Customer Focused.

In our 2024 progress report, we outlined our three equality outcomes and how we would measure their success: 

To ensure we continue to improve our approach to embedding a positive EDI culture at FSS, it is important to reflect on what we have achieved since our progress report in 2024.  

FSS will foster an inclusive culture with equality, diversity and inclusion at its core and provide a fair and inclusive workplace that values the contribution of employees from all backgrounds.   

EDI events:

As part of our commitment to promoting EDI across the organisation, we introduced dedicated EDI events, where we invite speakers and health professionals to deliver talks and provide health and wellbeing support over the course of a day. In 2025 we held our second EDI conference. This was held as an in-person event with guest speakers from organisations including OneSpirit Interfaith Ministry and Inclusive Farm. Our colleagues also presented on “Embracing Neurodiversity” The event was open to all employees across the organisation and was well attended and received positive feedback.   

Staff Wellbeing Network

Due to the disbanding by Public Health Scotland of the Health Working Lives programme in 2023, the team surveyed our staff and officially rebranded as the Staff Wellbeing Network in 2025. With the support of senior leadership, the group continue to work across the organisation to improve employee wellbeing. Over the last four years, the group has played a key role in organising the following activities:  

• keynote speakers on a range of wellbeing topics    
• social events to encourage socialisation and inclusion (establishing a Wellbeing book club and volunteering opportunities including beach clean ups)
• achievement of the Cycle to Work and Walk at Work awards in 2025
• Healthy Working Lives Teams Channel to share information and health promotion  
   

EDI calendar

As part of the organisation’s commitment to fostering an inclusive workplace, an EDI programme was introduced to facilitate key events across each month. In 2025, events were held at various times throughout the year, on different topics including Breathing Space Week, Time to Talk Day, Mental Health Awareness Week, Volunteer Week, and Carers Week.  

As part of our continued commitment to promoting EDI, the Staff Wellbeing Network and HR team have developed a programme of events for 2026 focusing on various campaigns including World Cancer Day, Neurodiversity Celebration Week, and Step in to Spring. Regular EDI related blog posts are including in our Chief Executives weekly blog as well as on our intranet, Saltire.  

Non Departmental Public Body Equality Forum 

We continue to be an active participant at the Non Departmental Public Body (NDPB) equality forum with a HR representative attending these quarterly meetings. The forum gives us an opportunity to share knowledge and good practice with other government bodies. We gain insight and support from across the Scottish Government’s delivery bodies network to action meaningful change with regards to equality, diversity and inclusion.    

EDI training

As part of our People Strategy and following People Survey results, the Stamp it Out campaign was launched in 2022. The training focuses on bullying, harassment and victimisation in the workplace. Since the roll out to all head office and field staff, a mandatory e-learning version has been developed and was introduced as a refresher for all staff in Autumn 2025.  

In addition to this, the Learning and Development (L&D) team delivered Emotional Intelligence training to our Operations team as part of our commitment to fostering a positive workplace culture.

EDI training is included in our induction programme which is well established and all hiring managers are required to undertake Inclusive Recruitment training.  

BVA silver great workplace accreditation 

We were awarded a Silver Great Workplace Accreditation in 2025 by the British Veterinary Association (BVA). The Great Workplace accreditation scheme is designed to recognise and reward positive workplace culture across veterinary workplaces and is assessed on four main themes: Health and Wellbeing, Leadership and Management, Culture and Learning and Development.  

Faith and wellbeing Room 

In our commitment to providing an inclusive workplace for all staff, a multi-purpose room has been set up within our head office, Pilgrim House. This room can be used by staff as a quiet space for activities including prayer, medical needs, breast-feeding and for other religious or wellbeing needs.

Menopause

We continue to provide sanitary products within all bathrooms in head office and plants. We have also introduced new initiatives including adult incontinence pads and long cardigans as part of our efforts to support staff experiencing menopause.  

We continue to regularly promote awareness and training for staff on how to support colleagues with Menopause.  

Mental Health First Aiders and Toolkit 

We currently have 22 trained mental health first aiders available to support staff with their mental health and wellbeing. Training is kept under review and retraining as well as training in Mental Health related topics will be offered in the next reporting period.  

Following feedback from the mental health first aiders and as part of our commitment to inclusion and wellbeing, a mental health toolkit was created as a resource for employees, managers, and the HR team. The toolkit provides details on available internal resources, training and education, digital tools, and our wellbeing initiatives.  

In 2026, the intention is to set up a support group for our mental health first aiders which will be facilitated by HR.   

FSS will work to ensure the service and information we provide is suitable and accessible to all users. We aim to connect with all consumers across Scotland promoting a positive food culture where food is safe and authentic. 

Accessibility and Inclusive Comms Working Group 

Formed in the final quarter of 2023, this internal group has representation from across the organisation and aims to embed accessibility practices into all aspects of FSS’s work and to ensure we comply with the relevant legislation. The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations 2018 legislation describes the WCAG 2.2 AA Accessibility standard that should be met.  

We published our Accessibility and Inclusive Communications Plan in February 2024. This sets out how we will improve the accessibility and inclusivity of FSS guidance and information relating to healthy eating and food safety. It details the goals and specific actions that we aim to carry out to ensure there are limited barriers to users in accessing information in accordance with their individual needs and requirements. As part of this plan, we have implemented mandatory accessibility training for all staff and published guidance for staff on developing content in additional formats such as BSL, large print, Easy Read, and other spoken languages.  

The Communications and Marketing team also works to ensure FSS’s output is inclusive and representative of the diversity of people in Scotland. 

Consumer engagement

We recognise the importance of communicating our advice, using appropriate messaging, through a range of channels to reach the intended audience and ensure understanding. We make sure written materials are in plain English, and audio or visual resources are available where appropriate. For video assets, subtitles, closed captions are added and, for some larger campaigns, BSL translated versions are created.

For the first time, we delivered social media activity on vitamin D outside the winter months. During July and August, we ran messaging aimed at people at higher risk of vitamin D deficiency, who are advised to take a daily 10mg supplement all year round – rather than only between October and March. The activity focused on pregnant and breastfeeding women, children under three, people who spend limited time in direct sunlight – such as those living in care homes or who cover their skin for cultural or religious reasons – and people with darker skin. We also developed a poster and updated the standard campaign toolkit to include the summer messaging, with the toolkit’s social posts translated into Scottish Gaelic, Urdu, Bengali, Simplified Chinese, Ukrainian, Polish, Hindi, and Arabic.

We consistently monitor and evaluate consumer attitudes via our Consumer Tracker which can help us assess the impacts of our work on communities, including those with protected characteristics.   

Employee advocacy

Our Communications and Marketing team work closely with our employees to ensure they have an appreciation of external engagement. All staff are informed about marketing campaigns in our CEO Weekly Update.

The Communications team launched the Internal Communications Steering Group in 2024 to coordinate our internal communication approach. It is an opportunity for each branch to provide an update on any current or upcoming work, events, or meetings which could be of interest to staff.

The key communications priorities are outlined at a weekly tactical meeting that all staff are invited to attend as well as in head office and field staff meetings. 

Stakeholder engagement

We work collaboratively with other organisations, to ensure engagement efforts are inclusive and reach intended audiences. We partnered with several organisations as part of our Campylobacter Campaign, aimed at increasing awareness of the bacteria campylobacter and the danger it poses to those aged over 65. We visited Bield retirement housing facilities to promote the campaign guidance to residents.  

We also produce toolkits for stakeholders to share on their own channels to help increase the reach of our key messaging. For example, for our Eat Well, Your Way resource, which features advice for cost effective ways to eat healthier.   

Scottish Parliament Cross-Party Groups 

Scottish Parliament Cross-Party Groups (CPGs) focus on specific issues or areas of policy, and are attended by MSPs, by organisations and bodies across various sectors, and by individuals with an interest in these issues or policy areas. We have membership to a number of these CPGs relevant to our work.  

Our engagement has seen colleagues providing inputs at meetings of different CPGs. These include presentations on:

• health inequalities at the CPG on Health Inequalities
• the risks of Campylobacter and on the Listeria outbreak at the CPG on Older People, Age and Ageing
• the risks of on-farm poisoning at the CPGs on Crofting and the CPG on Animal Welfare
• preventing food crime at the CPG on Food, and at the CPG on Independence Convenience Stores.

Many of the Scottish Parliament’s CPGs have large memberships, and extensive networks. We circulate key information through these networks on a wide range of issues. These include advice and information about, for example, the risks of Vitamin D deficiency, the risks of Campylobacter, the risks of Listeria, updates on counterfeit vodka, advice on preventing on-farm poisoning, and details of our DISH report, and report on discretionary food and drink.  

CPGs have also circulated details of our consultations on Section 42 Reports relating to the food safety and human health aspects of the UK’s accession to the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), and of the UK-India Free Trade Agreement. 

Equality Impact Assessments 

We recognise the importance of considering the perspectives of those with protected characteristics when implementing new policies and practices. To help deliver this commitment we have made Equality Impact Assessments (EQIA) a mandatory consideration for all new projects. These assessments help us improve outcomes, transparency, and accountability.  

Digital accessibility 

As a public sector organisation, we have a responsibility to provide access to our services for all people in Scotland. Digital accessibility ensures that everyone - including people with disabilities - can access and use our digital content. We are committed to creating content that is inclusive by design, supports diverse user needs, and consistently delivers a high‑quality experience.

Following extensive penetration testing, user research, and accessibility audits, the new Food Standards Scotland website launched on 1 October. Key outcomes include:

• accessibility compliance: the site meets WCAG 2.2 standards, ensuring inclusive access for all users
• improved user experience: user testing shows a significantly enhanced user journey and clearer site structure

To ensure our digital content is accessible, user‑friendly, and future‑proof, we are adopting an HTML first publications approach. This means our primary version of guidance, policy documents, corporate governance, and research reports will be created and maintained directly in HTML, with other formats (such as PDFs) generated only when genuinely needed. This ensures that information is published as a well-structured, accessible web document.

This approach helps us meet our legal accessibility obligations under The Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018. It also makes sure online content is accessible to people with diverse access needs, including those using screen readers or assistive technologies. 

Social media comms 

For all social media activity, we post using plain English, using Canva’s and Sprouts accessibility tools to ensure images are accessible by including alt text. We include subtitles on video content. Annually, we have social media activity for International Day of Women and British Science Week.  

Two key outputs in 2024 were:  

• a feature on three of our food safety scientists in Equate Career Hub which connects employers with women who are studying, working, or looking to work in a STEM role: Looking beyond ‘Academia vs. Industry’ - Equate Career Hub
• a presentation by our head of science at the Marine Alliance for Science and Technology for Scotland (MASTS) retreat for post graduate research students on 11 March 2024 to raise awareness of the work of FSS, and opportunities for scientists across government.

In 2025, we expanded food safety content for cultural and awareness days, including Chinese New Year, Eid, Diwali and Vaisakhi. We shared our Accessibility and Inclusive Communications plan, which includes out BSL commitments, on International Day of Sign Languages and Global Accessibility Awareness Day.

We have continued to share some video content with BSL, most recently in relation to the launch of the new website and a Field Business Operators video. 

We will work collaboratively with Scottish Government towards increasing the diversity of our workforce, so that it is representative of the communities we serve across Scotland.  

Self-reporting equality and diversity information 

In 2024, the introduction of the new integrated HR and Finance system, Oracle Cloud gave us further opportunities to promote the benefits of declaring EDI information at first log in and keeping this up to date in a safe and secure system. It is clear from the EDI data below that the number of “unknown” has reduced in many categories, which suggests this promotion has been somewhat successful.  

We will continue to seek opportunities to encourage our employees to declare EDI information, whilst not mandatory, it can support FSS in identifying areas where action may be required.  

Employee Passports 

Following the successful launch of Employee Passports in 2023, we continue to promote the use and benefits of this through regular promotion at staff events and the development of a Bitesize learning session as well as communication in daily workplace conversations. This allows managers and employees an opportunity to discuss wellbeing and document any reasonable adjustments or areas of where short or longer term support may be required and any concerns can be addressed.  

Fair and open recruitment 

We work in conjunction with Scottish Government HR Resourcing team as part of our Shared Service Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to recruit fairly and equally across all of our advertised job roles. Their policies align with Civil Service Recruitment Principles. We advertise our vacancies across a multitude of different platforms such as local industry publications, industry specific career fairs, universities, LinkedIn, and online job sites, helping us reach a diverse candidate pool. In line with employment legislation and best practice, FSS is committed to equality of opportunity in employment. We understand the importance of ensuring no candidate is discriminated against, either directly or indirectly, to help us achieve this, equality information is not shared with recruiting managers.  

We encourage hiring managers to build a gender balanced panel and to include colleagues from a range of backgrounds, characteristics, and experiences as this helps give a more thorough assessment of role suitability and can provide different perspectives on a candidate's performance.  

Alongside the introduction of Oracle Cloud, in 2024 we adopted the Scottish Government adopted the Civil Service success profiles recruitment framework, replacing the Skills for Success Framework. The Success Profiles framework was adopted in other government departments in 2018 and evaluation of their impact by the Cabinet Office showed improved outcomes for disabled candidates in securing job offers. As part of the roll out, training, including inclusive recruitment training, has been provided to hiring managers and recruitment panel members across the organisation.  

Flexible working 

We offer flexible working from day one across all our vacancies and actively support women back into work following a break in their careers. Hiring Managers must consider all requests from successful candidates for working part-time or on a job share basis in all posts.    

Disability Confident 

In 2024, as part of our commitment to providing an inclusive environment and improving our workplace diversity, we retained our Level 2 Disability Confident employer status. This involved a self-assessment and measuring our organisation against a set of themes considering how to attract, recruit and retain disabled people.  

Career Ready 

Throughout 2024, 2025, and 2026, FSS continued to participate in the Career Ready programme. We are currently supporting a mentee this year who will benefit from a four-week work placement with us in Summer 2026.  

Feedback from our Career Ready student from 2024:  

I am currently in my sixth year studying Chemistry, Health and Food Technology and taking a foundational apprenticeship course which is health and social care. I would love to study nutrition and dietetics in the future.  

I worked as an intern at FSS for the month of July 2024, through a program called Career Ready. This is a two-year program where the Career Ready organisers paired me up with my mentor, Graham Forbes, for 18 months. We had a series of monthly meetings and then I was ready to work at Pilgrim House for a month to gain experience in the workplace.

During the month, I explored the work of different branches, for example, the audit assurance, communication and marketing, and the diet and nutrition. Exploring and working with these different team was an enjoyable experience because I was able to learn the distinct roles each branch played in FSS. Based on my interests the majority of my time was with the diet and nutrition team where Alana McDonald gave me a project to create a report on food sustainability. I extracted information from tracking surveys and compared the data in each year. I conducted a survey using Google Forms to find out what my friends knew about food sustainability. Doing this project helped me gain great skills like researching and data analysis.

I was fortunate to have the opportunity to speak with the Chair of FSS’ Board, FSS’s Chief Executive, and the Deputy Chief Executive to hear their backgrounds. I really love the working environment and the staff who work at FSS. I also had fun attending meetings to get a grasp of what each branch does.

The major things I have learned is to never be afraid to take opportunities or to ask questions, and to always stay inquisitive. After my sixth year I plan to further my education to get a degree in dietetics, nutrition, and public health as I am now clear on what I would like to study with the help of the career ready program.

Staff networks 

In partnership with Scottish Government, FSS staff have access to a fantastic community of both in house and Scottish Government led staff networks.  

With over 20 diversity focused networks of an extremely broad scope, this online community-based support and information forum is an integral element in how we embed EDI into the everyday working lives of our staff.  

Staff networks are accessible to all FSS staff via Viva Engage. Networks welcome anyone who has an interest that can benefit from membership or add value to the group.  

As of January 2026, 17 members of staff are actively engaged in 1 or more of the available staff networks. That’s almost 6% of employees actively participating in EDI based discussions, events, and information sharing partnerships across FSS, Scottish Government main and the wider Scottish Government bodies daily.  

Networks help us champion employee contribution, giving employees a safe space to have a trusted and confidential voice – valuing their contributions. Networks evidence just one of the many ways we work collaboratively with Scottish Government to increase the support for our diverse workforce and represent the different communities we serve across Scotland.  

Our participation in facilitating access to staff networks allows us to achieve success in our outlined equality outcomes. We will continue to promote both our internal staff networks and Scottish Government led networks to all staff to all staff, including new joiners as part of their induction process.