Generally, employers are not permitted to ask about the health of a job applicant before offering a job to them, except in a limited number of situations.
When a job offer has been made, it can be made conditional on satisfactory health checks, but schools must not discriminate against job applicants having received the results of such checks. Health checks would usually only be appropriate where relevant to the job or where reasonable adjustments need to be considered for disabled applicants.
However, as a School, you need to verify an applicant’s mental and physical fitness for the role before appointing them. A job applicant can be asked relevant questions about disability and health in order to establish whether they have the physical and mental capacity for the specific role, but this should be done with caution, to reduce the risk of a claim of discrimination.
For more information on pre-employment health questionnaires, please see:
REC3: Guidance: pre-employment health questionnaires.
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