Assignment 2: Learning Aim C: Investigate the influence of health and safety legislation and
policies in health and social care settings.
In healthcare and social services, laws like the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HASAWA)
and the Care Act 2014 set standards for safety, quality, and dignity. At Merryvale Residence, these
laws guide how care is provided to residents, ensuring a safe and supportive environment. However,
challenges may arise in fully implementing these standards. Evaluating and improving practices in
line with these laws is crucial for upholding the highest quality of care and support for residents.
In this assignment I will be outlining the health and safety legislation and policies in health and social
care, the current and applicable ones to England. Such as the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974,
Data Protection Act 1989, The Care Act 2014, and many more. As well as the influence of legislation
and policies on health and social care practices. Such as the safeguarding of vulnerable adults,
children and young people, protection from accidents, injuries and illness, including infection
control, food preparation, and hazardous substances, and more.
Legislation is law which has been produced by a governing body. The aim is to, regulate (monitor),
authorise (allow), sanction (punish), grant (accept), declare (state), and restrict (block). The purpose
of legislation is to ensure that everyone’s health, safety and security is safe guarded. In other words,
it protects service users and practitioners working in the care sector. Legislations are important as it
defines the legal responsibilities that health professionals and organisations must follow to protect
the health and safety of their service users and the public.
It is important that we follow the current legislation for the country that we live in. Some of the
major legislation and regulations that some people will come across when working are as follows.
Firstly, The Health and Safety at work Act 1974, or HASAWA is a legislation aimed at reducing risk to
employees, volunteers and visitors to a workplace. It applies to all workplace and policies can vary in
response to the needs of the organisation. It is the primary piece of legislation covering occupational
health and safety in general in Great Britain. The Health and Safety Executive, with local authorities
is responsible for enforcing the Act. In a care environment there must appoint someone competent,
a senior manager, to help you meet your health and safety duty; someone with the necessary skills,
knowledge, and experience to manage health and safety. Because of this law, the care environment
must be safe, so managers must carry out tasks as laid out in the regulations, such as risk
assessments and have an accident book or dictates the need for a qualified first aider. The
employer's responsibilities are to make sure the workplace is fae, e.g., standards and rules,
procedures, storage, facilities provision, equipment and maintenance and provide insurance. Ensure
staff have PPE, H&S training e.g. COSHH. Keep records as per the law requirements e.g. RIDDOR.
Prevent potential accident or injury, protection. And to display the Health and Safety poster at work.
Employees responsibilities are to follow the training, when using any work items your employer has
given. To take reasonable care of your own and other people’s health and safety. To tell someone if
you think the work or inadequate precautions are putting anyone’s health and safety at serious risk.
The H&S Law poster must be displayed in every care setting, including school and college, in the staff
areas. It outlines employee's responsibilities for keeping themselves and others safe.
Management of Health and safety at Work Regulations 1999. These guidelines that come from the
HASAWA 1974. These state a range of rules that need to be in place, such as recording in accident
books, having qualified first aiders, providing H&S equipment such as first aid room, latex gloves,
regulations such as COSHH, RIDDOR, manual handling etc, and fire safety equipment and a planned
,fire evacuation procedure. Accident book is an essential document for employers and employees,
who are required by law to record and report details of specific work-related injuries and accidents.
The Manual Handling Operations Regulations (MHOR) 2002. These regulations require hazards to be
identified, where they are to be handled and are heavy or large. Risk assessments must be carried
out and safe practice about steps to move heavy goods. These regulations require employers
provide and maintain equipment that may assist the moving of heavy or large objects. Employers
must provide training too. In the role of the workplace, individuals must know their limits and not
attempt to exceed them, being forced to do so by an employer increases risk. If risks cannot be
eliminated, then individuals should try to minimise them. Individuals should monitor and review
daily practices regularly for potential improvements. And lastly, they should receive manual handling
training.
The Food Hygiene Regulations 2006, amended in 2013. These regulations apply if you are preparing
food for a service user, or if the service user is preparing food for their own consumptions, this is
considered a ‘domestic arrangement’. The role of this act in the workplace is that individuals must
ensure that their hands and clothing are clean, and their hair is tied back or in a net before preparing
food. Individuals must make sure that the area they are working in is clean. They must also check
that food they are preparing is fit for purpose. And lastly, individuals must prepare the food
according to directions and to the correct temperature. (Many foods are dangerous if not prepared
correctly; some may be lethal.
Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) 2002 is an act that requires employers to carry
out risks assessments relating to hazardous substances, such as cleaning fluids used in care settings.
These can be hazardous to health if splashed on skin, inhaled or drunk. COSHH requires them to
have procedures in place such as a locked storage and recording what type of substances they are,
on specialist data sheets. Only trained staff have the key to storage and there must be a stock record
reviewed every time it’s open. The role of this legislation in the workplace is that individuals must
follow instructions on the label of the product that they are using. Individuals must store products
safely, in accordance with the workplace policy, e.g. controlled drugs must be in a locked cabinet
that is fixed to the wall. Individuals must not assume that they know the contents of unmarked
containers. If it is not labelled, then it must not be used. And lastly, individuals should not decant
substances from their original container to a container that was designed for a different purpose,
e.g. putting bleach in a lemonade bottle.
Reporting of Injuries, Diseases, and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) 2013 is an act that
requires employers to record and keep records for 3 years of work-related accidents that cause
death or serious injury (referred to as reportable injuries), diseases, and dangerous occurrences. The
role of this in the workplace is that individuals must report accidents, illnesses and near misses to
your employer, either directly or through the responsible person. The responsible person in the
organisation must inform the enforcing authority about accidents resulting in death, injuries to
workers, hospital treatment and other dangerous occurrences or situations. The individual's
employer must take improvement actions if there is a pattern of poor practice. The list of 'specified
injuries' in RIDDOR 2013 replaces the previous list of 'major injuries' in RIDDOR 1995. Specified
injuries are fractures, other than to fingers, thumbs and toes, amputations, any injury likely to lead
to permanent loss of sight or reduction in sight, any crush injury to the head or torso causing
damage to the brain or internal organs, serious burns, any scalping requiring hospital treatment, any
loss of consciousness caused by head injury or asphyxia, any other injury arising from working in an
enclosed space which leads to hypothermia or heat-induced illness or requires resuscitation or
admittance to hospital for more than 24 hours. Reporting is through the HSE website, which sends
,and alerts. RIDDOR requires employers to have a procedure and place to record accidents which
cause serious injury, diseases and incidents, or face prosecution and a £20,000 fine. Staff must be
trained about these at the start of the job and at regular review dates.
The Data Protection Act (GDPR) is designed to protect personal data stored on computers or in an
organised paper filling system. Data must be used fairly and lawfully for a specific purpose. Data
must be adequate, relevant, and not excessive and must be accurate. Data must not be kept longer
than is necessary. Data must be kept securely, and individuals have the right to find out what
information organisations store about them. During the practice this means that no information
should be given over the phone if the person is unknown. All paper copies must not be overseen and
stored in a locked office or filling cabinets. Computers must be password protected and staff to lock
stations if they left unattended. Information is only to be passed on a need-to-know basis only. And
the damage caused by breached confidentiality can be devasting. This is all to maintain
confidentiality which is key when working in health and social care and is the basis of the
professional relationship that you form with a service user. Maintaining confidentiality helps to
preserve the service user's dignity.
The Care Standards Act 2000 is an act that established a National Care Standards Commission to
provide for the registration and regulation of children’s home, independent hospitals, independent
clinics, care homes, residential family centres, independent medical agencies, domiciliary care
agencies, fostering agencies, nurse agencies and voluntary adoption agencies. This act sets minimum
standards of care and requires that these institutions be inspected and regulated. Care standards
have a role in ensuring that care homes promote, recognise and support mental health within the
care establishment. The standards require care homes to access primary and secondary care and
health services for their residents regularly so that the service user’s mental health is cared for and
treated appropriately.
The Equality Act 2010 is a law which protects you from discrimination. It means that discrimination
or unfair treatment based on certain personal characteristics. In practice, this means social care
services being available and provided on an equal basis to everyone, whatever their protected
characteristics. It also means considering whether a policy or practice, which applies to everyone,
might place a certain group at disadvantage. This legislation makes services, facilities and employers
aware that they can be prosecuted and fined if they do discriminate as the public has a system or
redress, meaning, a way of getting justice. Managers of care setting must make sure they have
policies about recruiting staff and promoting staff that ensures no one is discriminated. Managers
also need to ensure staff are well trained, so they do not discriminate against any service users. So,
they can have induction training at the start of a job and regular refresher training.
The Care Act 2014 is the law that sets out how adult social care in England should be provided. It
requires local authorities to make sure that people who live in their areas, receive services that
prevent their care needs from becoming more serious or delay the impact of their needs, can get the
information and advice they need to make good decisions about care and support, have a range of
high quality, appropriate services to choose from, and have more control over how their care and
support is organised. This law also sets out what local authorities (and some other organisations in
the care sector) must do related to safeguarding adults (including by setting up a Safeguarding
Adults Board in their area), promoting people’s wellbeing, promoting integration of care and support
within health services, providing information and advice, promoting diversity and quality in provision
of services, assessing people’s needs and deciding how to meet them, etc. The purpose of this act is
to implement a system of support, putting the service users at the centre of care while integrating
the needs of carers so support is in place before the service user's situation is in crisis.
, The Care Quality Commission Standards. The CQC introduced a range of standards to improve the
service levels offered by health and social care providers The CQC can inspect your workplace. Look
at what you do and how you do it and ask you about your training and competence. The CQC
publishes new finding as a rating that people so that people can choose the highest quality care. The
CQC is independent of care providers but works with them and with the public to improve the
quality of care provided. The CQC can issue warning notices with deadlines for improvement. It can
impose special measures to improve the quality of care provided. There are 13 fundamental
standards in the CQC framework. These are as stated, person-centred care, dignity and respect,
consent, safety, safeguarding from abuse, food and drink, premises and equipment, complaints,
good governance, staff, fit and proper staff, duty of Candor, and display rating.
Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks is a way for employers check your criminal record, to
help decide whether you are a suitable person to work for them. This includes deciding whether it is
suitable for you to work with children or vulnerable adults. DBS stands for Disclosure and Barring
Service. It is important because it helps employers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland make
safer recruitment decisions and prevent unsuitable people from working with vulnerable groups,
including children.
Safeguarding, vulnerable adults, children and young people
Safeguarding is about protecting vulnerable service users. As well as protecting front-line workers,
managers, and care setting organisations from being accused about not sufficiently protecting
service users. Each health and social care setting has a safeguarding policy, which has a lead
manager and is reviewed annually. All staff, at the start of employment are trained in safeguarding
and existing staff will have regular refreshers. Every step in a procedure from being vigilant and
reporting even the smallest concerns to a line manager, right up to statements in a court
prosecution, is planned and organised so the protection of vulnerable people and, those who are
involved in a professional manner. Service user’s welfare is the most important aspect of care as
they must feel safe and secure in the care provided.
The focus of the Health and Safety at job etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA) is to protect the health, safety,
and welfare of workers in the workplace and any other individuals who might be affected by their
job. While HASAWA does not specifically address protecting vulnerable adults in care settings, it
does impose basic obligations on employers to protect the health and safety of all workers, including
those who reside in care facilities. Companies must offer a secure workplace, appropriate
supervision and training, and carry out risk assessments to find and eliminate dangers. Although the
primary focus of HASAWA is workplace safety, its principles can also indirectly help to the protection
of individuals who are vulnerable by creating situations in which care can be given in a safe manner
and effectively.
However, the Care Act 2014 focuses on how adults in England are provided with care and assistance.
Its main goal is to advance people's wellbeing, which includes protecting older folks who are more
susceptible to abuse and neglect. In contrast to HASAWA, the Care Act imposes legal obligations on
local authorities to investigate allegations of abuse or neglect and take appropriate measures to
protect vulnerable persons. It lays out core values for protection, including empowering people,
averting harm, and approaching interventions from a person-centred perspective. According to the
Care Act, local authorities must set up safeguarding protocols, inform and assist people who are at
risk, investigate safeguarding issues, and work with other organisations to keep adults safe. The Care
Act offers an all-encompassing structure designed especially to meet the needs of protecting
