/ LEGAL NOTICE

Equality, Religious Requirements and Schedule 9

Equality, religious requirements and Schedule 9

Last updated: 22 / 9 / 2026
Operator: FRATREM GROUP LTD, Company number 08002465
Platform: Jobs for Muslims, including the website at jobsformuslims.com and any associated services (the Platform)

1. Purpose and commitment to equal opportunity

Jobs for Muslims is a community-focused employment platform intended to help jobseekers discover employment opportunities, employers and workplaces that may be of particular interest to Muslim communities.

The Platform supports fair, inclusive and lawful recruitment. Jobs for Muslims welcomes users of all religions and beliefs, and users with no religion or belief. Nothing on the Platform is intended to suggest that access to the Platform, use of the Platform, or eligibility to apply for a vacancy is restricted to Muslims, unless a specific and lawful legal exception applies to the relevant role.

Religion or belief is a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010. This includes any religion, any religious or philosophical belief, and a lack of religion or belief. Employers and advertisers must ensure that all vacancies, recruitment processes and employment decisions comply with the Equality Act 2010, other applicable employment and equality legislation, and all applicable regulatory requirements.legislation.gov+1

2. Employer responsibility

Each employer, recruiter, agency, organisation or other party posting a vacancy or other recruitment content on the Platform (an Advertiser) is solely responsible for:

  • The accuracy, completeness and lawfulness of its job advert and all supporting materials.

  • Its recruitment criteria, selection process, interview process, appointment decisions and employment practices.

  • Ensuring that it does not unlawfully discriminate against, harass or victimise any applicant, worker, employee or other person.

  • Obtaining its own legal advice where a vacancy includes, implies or may be understood as including a requirement connected with religion or belief or any other protected characteristic.

  • Providing Jobs for Muslims promptly with any information and evidence reasonably requested in relation to the legality of an advert.

An Advertiser must not publish, or ask Jobs for Muslims to publish, an advert that directly or indirectly states or implies that an applicant must be Muslim, must follow Islam, must hold a particular religion or belief, or must not hold a particular religion or belief, unless that requirement is lawful and properly justified in respect of the specific role.

3. Schedule 9 occupational requirements

The Equality Act 2010 may, in limited circumstances, permit an employer to apply a requirement relating to religion or belief. In particular, Schedule 9 may apply where being of a particular religion or belief is a genuine occupational requirement for a specific role, applying that requirement is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim, and the relevant statutory conditions are met. The assessment is role-specific, fact-sensitive and must be made by reference to the actual nature or context of the work; an employer’s preference, a customer preference, an organisational culture, or a general religious ethos will not necessarily establish a lawful requirement.legislation.gov+2

An Advertiser relying, or seeking to rely, on Schedule 9 must ensure that:

  • The requirement is necessary for the particular role, rather than merely preferred.

  • The requirement is objectively justified by the nature or context of the work.

  • The requirement is proportionate, with no less discriminatory reasonable alternative available.

  • The wording used in the advert is limited to what is necessary and does not go beyond the lawful scope of the requirement.

  • The Advertiser retains written evidence of its reasoning and is able to provide it to Jobs for Muslims on request.

  • Any religious requirement is kept under review and removed when it is no longer lawful or necessary.

For clarity, an Advertiser must not assume that Schedule 9 applies merely because it is Muslim-owned, faith-based, serves Muslim communities, operates with an Islamic ethos, or wishes to recruit someone familiar with Muslim communities. A requirement for knowledge, language ability, cultural competence, relevant professional experience or an ability to engage credibly with a community may be more appropriate than a requirement that an applicant holds a particular religion or belief, where those qualities meet the genuine needs of the role without excluding applicants by religion.

4. Special provisions for religious organisations

Schedule 9 includes distinct and narrowly framed provisions that can apply to certain employment for the purposes of an organised religion. Those provisions may address particular requirements connected with religion or belief and, in limited circumstances, other protected characteristics.

Any Advertiser seeking to rely on these provisions must obtain independent specialist legal advice before submitting an advert. Jobs for Muslims may require a written legal opinion or other appropriate evidence before considering publication.

Jobs for Muslims does not provide legal advice, does not determine whether an occupational requirement is lawful, and does not represent that any proposed or published religious requirement satisfies Schedule 9 or any other legal exception.

5. Required declaration by advertisers

Where an Advertiser wishes to include a requirement or preference connected with religion or belief, the Advertiser must provide a written declaration, in the form required by Jobs for Muslims, confirming that:

The Advertiser has carefully assessed the specific role and confirms that any stated requirement or preference relating to religion or belief is lawful, accurate, necessary and proportionate. Where the Advertiser relies on Schedule 9 to the Equality Act 2010, the Advertiser confirms that it reasonably considers all relevant statutory conditions to be satisfied for the particular role; has retained written evidence supporting that conclusion; and will provide that evidence to Jobs for Muslims on request. The Advertiser understands that Jobs for Muslims does not give legal advice, does not endorse or verify the legal conclusion, and may refuse, edit, suspend or remove the advert at its discretion.

The declaration must be made by a person authorised to bind the Advertiser. An Advertiser must notify Jobs for Muslims immediately if its declaration becomes inaccurate, incomplete or misleading, or if circumstances change so that the requirement may no longer be lawful.

6. Evidence and review process

Jobs for Muslims may, before publication or at any point after publication, ask an Advertiser to provide evidence supporting a claimed occupational requirement. This may include:

  • A clear explanation of the duties and context of the role.

  • The exact statutory provision or provisions on which the Advertiser seeks to rely.

  • The legitimate aim said to justify the requirement.

  • The reason a person without the stated religion or belief could not reasonably perform the role.

  • Evidence that the requirement is proportionate and no less restrictive alternative would adequately achieve the stated aim.

  • Details of the Advertiser’s religious ethos where relevant.

  • Confirmation that the wording has been reviewed by the Advertiser’s legal advisers.

  • A written legal opinion, where Jobs for Muslims reasonably considers it necessary.

The Platform may take account of the information supplied by an Advertiser, but is not required to accept an Advertiser’s legal assessment. Jobs for Muslims may decline to publish, require amendment of, temporarily suspend, permanently remove, or otherwise restrict any advert or content if it reasonably considers that the advert may be discriminatory, misleading, unlawful, inadequately evidenced, inconsistent with this policy, or likely to expose the Platform or users to legal, regulatory or reputational risk.

7. Challenges and complaints

Any person who believes that an advert published on the Platform is discriminatory, unlawful or inconsistent with this policy may submit a complaint to us using CONTACT US

A complaint should, where possible, identify:

  • The vacancy title and link or reference number.

  • The name of the Advertiser.

  • The wording or feature of the advert being challenged.

  • The basis of the concern.

  • Any relevant supporting information.

Jobs for Muslims may acknowledge receipt, seek further information from the complainant and/or Advertiser, suspend the relevant advert while enquiries are undertaken, and take such steps as it considers appropriate. Jobs for Muslims is not required to disclose confidential information received from an Advertiser, including legal advice, internal documents or personal data.

A decision by Jobs for Muslims to publish, refuse, amend, suspend, remove or retain an advert is an operational moderation decision. It is not a legal determination that Schedule 9 applies, that an advert is lawful, or that any person has or has not been discriminated against.

8. No legal endorsement or safe harbour

Publication of an advert on the Platform does not mean that Jobs for Muslims has verified the Advertiser’s legal analysis, accepted that Schedule 9 applies, approved a claimed occupational requirement, or guaranteed that the advert or recruitment process is lawful.

The Platform’s review, moderation, request for evidence, amendment of wording, failure to identify an issue, or decision not to remove an advert does not transfer legal responsibility from the Advertiser to Jobs for Muslims and does not constitute legal advice, a legal opinion, a certification of compliance, or a waiver of any rights.

An Advertiser remains responsible for independently establishing and maintaining the lawfulness of its advert and recruitment practices throughout the recruitment process. If any legal requirement is challenged, the Advertiser must co-operate fully with Jobs for Muslims and promptly provide all information, documents and assistance reasonably requested.

9. Platform rights and limitation

Jobs for Muslims may use automated tools, user reports and manual review to identify potentially non-compliant adverts. These measures are risk controls only and cannot guarantee that every unlawful or inappropriate advert will be detected.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Jobs for Muslims does not accept responsibility for:

  • An Advertiser’s decision to include or rely on a religion or belief requirement.

  • The accuracy or sufficiency of an Advertiser’s Schedule 9 analysis.

  • Any recruitment decision made by an Advertiser.

  • Any loss, claim, complaint, investigation, proceeding or liability arising from an Advertiser’s unlawful, misleading or discriminatory content or conduct.

Nothing in this policy or in the Platform’s terms excludes or limits liability which cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.

10. Indemnity

To the fullest extent permitted by law, each Advertiser shall indemnify and keep indemnified Jobs for Muslims, its officers, employees, contractors and agents against losses, liabilities, damages, costs and expenses, including reasonable legal costs, arising from or connected with:

  • Any breach by the Advertiser of this policy, the Platform terms or applicable law.

  • Any allegation that an advert, vacancy, recruitment criterion, instruction or recruitment practice submitted by the Advertiser is discriminatory, unlawful, misleading or otherwise non-compliant.

  • Any inaccurate, incomplete or misleading declaration made by the Advertiser about reliance on Schedule 9 or any other legal exception.

  • Any failure by the Advertiser to provide accurate supporting information or to notify Jobs for Muslims of a material change.

This indemnity does not require an Advertiser to indemnify Jobs for Muslims to the extent a final court decision determines that a loss was caused by Jobs for Muslims’ own fraud, wilful misconduct or liability that cannot lawfully be excluded.

11. Co-operation and information

The Advertiser must co-operate promptly and fully with any reasonable request from Jobs for Muslims concerning an advert, complaint, regulatory enquiry, legal claim or potential breach of this policy. This includes providing evidence, attendance records, role descriptions, recruitment criteria, correspondence, relevant policies and any independent legal advice or legal analysis on which the Advertiser relies, subject to any valid claim of legal professional privilege.

Where a complaint, claim, investigation or legal proceeding relates to an Advertiser or its advert, Jobs for Muslims may take any reasonably necessary protective action, including suspending or removing content, disabling the Advertiser’s account, retaining relevant records, and disclosing information where required or permitted by law.

12. No restriction on legal rights

Nothing in this policy affects a jobseeker’s, applicant’s, worker’s, employee’s or other person’s statutory rights. Nothing in this policy prevents a person from seeking independent legal advice, making a complaint to an appropriate authority, or pursuing any right or remedy available under applicable law.