Guides · United Kingdom · recruiters, HR & hiring managers
Disability and health wording in job adverts: literacy for UK recruiters
“Must be in good health”, “no ongoing medical conditions”, “medical clearance required before start” — health and disability labels still appear on UK vacancy drafts, often copied from old templates. This guide helps you read what those lines are doing on the published advert, and rewrite toward task-based requirements. Wording literacy only — not occupational health advice, not legal advice, and not Equality Act clearance.
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Why health lines get flagged on drafts
EHRC and sector guidance on inclusive recruitment cautions against filtering candidates by health or disability on the advert. On agency desks, the problematic line is usually shorthand for a legitimate operational need:
- Manual handling on a shift — lifting to a stated weight with safe technique.
- Working at height or confined spaces — task frequency and PPE, not a “fit person” label.
- Food hygiene or clinical settings — infection-control tasks, not “ disease-free” wording.
- Shift pattern stamina — 12-hour rotations, night work — describe the shift, not the person.
Each can be written as tasks and reasonable adjustments at work stage. This guide stays on advert wording — not post-offer OH questionnaires.
Common patterns on UK job ads
| Pattern on draft | Rewrite toward |
|---|---|
| “Must be in good health / fully fit” | Named tasks: e.g. lift 20kg to waist height, stand for 8 hours. See fully fit warehouse guide. |
| “No disabilities / no health conditions” | Remove person filter; list essential tasks with adjustment note at interview stage. |
| “Medical clearance required” | Move OH to post-offer process; advert lists task requirements only. |
| “Must disclose all medication” | Not advert-stage wording; safety-critical roles need HR/legal process, not a board filter. |
| “Physically and mentally strong” | Peak-volume calm, handover accuracy, or customer-facing tone — behaviours on shift. |
Three reading questions before publish
- Does the line describe a task or a person? Tasks belong; person labels deserve rewrite.
- Does an equal-opportunities footer contradict the body? See EO line vs title.
- Is the client brief pasted verbatim? Agency habit: edit before live — client brief vs agency ad.
Step 4 on the pre-publish checklist and pattern scan in wording patterns to self-check cover health-shaped phrases.
Desk habit
- Highlight every health, disability, or medical-clearance line.
- For each, write one sentence: what task on shift needs this?
- Remove advert-stage disclosure demands; note OH for post-offer HR.
- Paste revised draft into VacancyCheck before multi-board publish.
- Archive sign-off — prefer paste over live URL.
What this guide is not
- Not legal advice on reasonable adjustments, OH referrals, or disability discrimination casework.
- Not Equality Act clearance or a compliance certificate.
- Not guidance on safety-critical regulated roles — only on advert body wording.
- Not medical or occupational-health advice.
Questions
Can I ask for a medical certificate in the job advert?
This guide addresses published advert wording only. On the live advert, medical clearance and health-condition filters deserve a human rewrite toward task-based requirements.
Does VacancyCheck decide if a line is unlawful?
No. VacancyCheck flags phrasing patterns for human review. It is not legal advice and not Equality Act clearance.
How is this different from the fully fit warehouse guide?
The fully fit guide covers blanket fitness cues on manual-handling drafts. This page covers broader disability and health-condition labels and medical clearance lines in the advert body.
Related guides
- “Fully fit” on warehouse job ads
- Pre-publish wording checklist
- Wording patterns to self-check
- All guides
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Not legal advice. Not Equality Act clearance. Informational wording hygiene only. Last reviewed 24 September 2026.