The decision not to offer you a job on grounds of your age is unlawful, even if the motivation behind it is to balance the age profile of the workforce. 

The age provisions of the Equality Act say that positive discrimination on the grounds of age is unlawful. However, it is open to employers and training providers to take ‘positive action’. This means they can indicate they would welcome applications from particular age groups who are under-represented in their workforce but does not mean they can dismiss an application from anyone who falls outside that age group simply on the grounds of that individual’s age. (See the Guide on Recruitment and Selection)

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