Equality, Inclusion and Wellbeing Service

The Equality, Inclusion and Wellbeing Service is based within the Forth Valley Sensory Centre in Camelon, Falkirk. We support NHS colleagues, patients, carers and visitors to access information, services and support in an inclusive and equitable way.

Our aim is to help ensure that everyone has equal access to information, services, and support, regardless of their individual needs or circumstances.

Area covered

Our service covers the whole of the Forth Valley area, from Tyndrum in the north to Bo’ness in the south.

Opening hours

Forth Valley Sensory Centre, Camelon
Monday – Thursday 09:00 – 17:00
Friday 09:00 – 16:30
Saturday – Sunday Closed

Face-to-face appointments outside these opening hours may be arranged in advance where required.

For more information about the Forth Valley Sensory Centre and the wider range of services available there, please follow the Sensory Centre link – Forth Valley Sensory Centre

Meet the team

Our dedicated team provides advice, guidance, training and support across a wide range of equality, inclusion, accessibility, and wellbeing topics.

The team is made up of the following roles, each contributing knowledge and support to the service:

Equality, Diversity and Wellbeing Lead – leads and manages the team, turning our equality strategy and legal duties into action and helping make our workplaces and services fair, inclusive and accessible for everyone.
Disability Equality Advisor – supporting accessibility, inclusion and reasonable adjustments to help ensure equitable access and positive experiences for patients, carers and staff.
Disability Liaison Officer – helps turn our commitment to equality, accessibility and inclusion into practical action through training, advice and guidance, interpretation services and support for the Deaf/Deafblind community.
Service Administrator – provides admin, communication and operational support across the service. This includes supporting staff networks, coordinating and assisting staff wellbeing work, and supporting interpretation and translation service.

How we can help

We are here to help NHS colleagues, patients, carers, and visitors have equal access to information, services and support.

Equality, diversity and inclusion advice
Accessibility and reasonable adjustment guidance
Interpretation and translation services, including advice on legal obligations and best practice
Wellbeing support, resources and signposting
Staff Network facilitation, support and engagement activities

Training and awareness sessions

We offer a range of training and awareness sessions, including:

Communication with People with Sensory Loss
Disability Awareness
Deaf Awareness and Hard of Hearing Awareness
Environmental Awareness and Accessible Environments
Interpretation and Translation – Legal Obligations and Best Practice
Bespoke training tailored to individual teams and services

Training can be delivered on-site or virtually and tailored to your team’s role and needs.

To discuss requirements and learn more about our services, please contact us on 01324 590870.

British Sign Language (BSL) Joint Plan 2023 – 2029

NHS Forth Valley and Falkirk Council’s Joint BSL Plan 2023 – 2029 reflects our shared commitment to enhancing the lives of Deaf, Deafblind, and Tactile BSL users.

Rooted in partnership and informed by ongoing engagement with the BSL community and stakeholders, this plan builds on past successes to further improve services and foster inclusivity. Guided by the priorities of the Scottish Government’s National Plan, we aim to integrate the needs of BSL users into every aspect of our organisations, ensuring accessibility, equality, and empowerment. Together, we strive to create a future where BSL users can thrive as active, informed, and valued members of our community.

Download PDF Version

Please note, whenever we refer to ‘BSL users’ we mean Deaf and /or Deafblind people (those who receive the language in tactile form due to sight loss) whose first or preferred language is British Sign Language (BSL).

Foreword & Context

BSL Accessibility

Children, Young People & Families

Access to Employment

Health and Wellbeing

Celebrating BSL Culture

BSL Data

Transport

Access to Justice

Democratic Participation

Monitoring, Reporting & Feedback

BSL version

Equality and inclusion reports and plans

Our Equality and Inclusion Strategy, plans and annual reports are available on the Publications section of our site.

Referrals and reasonable adjustments

We accept referrals from healthcare professionals and partner organisations across Forth Valley.

Managers: NHS Forth Valley managers can refer a member of staff or discuss possible reasonable adjustments by emailing FV.equality@nhs.scot or calling 01324 590870.

Self-referrals: Colleagues can also refer themselves using the same email address or telephone number

Interpretation and translation

Interpretation and translation services are available to NHS Forth Valley colleagues and service users for health-related appointments. This service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Types of interpretation available: Interpretation support can be provided in different ways depending on the needs of the patient, service user and appointment. This may include face-to-face interpretation, telephone interpretation and Interpreter on Wheels services.

Booking an interpreter: NHS Forth Valley colleagues are responsible for arranging interpretation support when required. To book an interpreter, please contact the Interpretation and Translation Service directly on 01324 590886 or email your request FV.interpretation@nhs.scot.

Translation requests: Colleagues who require documentation translated to/from English should email the document to FV.interpretation@nhs.scot.

All interpreters and translators are fully qualified for their role and work to a professional code of conduct.

The interpretation and translation service is managed and operationally supported by the NHS Forth Valley Equality, Inclusion and Wellbeing Service. We welcome feedback or concerns about the service, as your views help us to continually improve the support provided.

Wellbeing events and pop-up activities

Throughout the year, we organise and promote wellbeing activities, awareness events and pop-up sessions. These offer colleagues opportunities to learn, connect with others, access support and take time to focus on their wellbeing.

We also work with Staff Networks, Wellbeing Champions and partner organisations to deliver awareness days, information events, engagement activities and wellbeing campaigns throughout the year. For more information, please visit our Staff Support and Wellbeing website: Staff Support and Wellbeing – NHS Forth Valley.

contactSCOTLAND BSL

Scotland’s British Sign Language Interpreting Video Relay Service (VRS) – enabling contact with all of Scotland’s public bodies and third sector organisations.

Visit Contact Scotland

Health Scotland BSL

Health Scotland and NHS 24 have produced some great information in BSL to support bowel, breast and cervical screening , along with some info on childhood and seasonal flu immunisation programmes.