Duty of Care

The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 establish the Fundamental Standards that all care providers must meet. As an employee, you have a duty to deliver care that meets these standards. This includes providing person-centred care (Regulation 9), treating people with dignity and respect (Regulation 10), obtaining valid consent (Regulation 11), ensuring safe care and treatment (Regulation 12), and protecting people from abuse (Regulation 13). Failure to meet these standards can result in CQC enforcement action, including conditions on registration, suspension, or cancellation.

This Act places a general duty on employers to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety, and welfare of all their employees. It also places duties on employees to take reasonable care for the health and safety of themselves and others who may be affected by their acts or omissions at work. In a care home context, this means following safe working practices, using equipment correctly, reporting hazards, and cooperating with employers on health and safety matters. Employees must not intentionally or recklessly interfere with anything provided in the interests of health and safety.

Every care worker has a duty to keep residents safe from harm. This includes identifying risks, following risk assessments, reporting concerns, and never ignoring signs that a resident may be at risk. You must follow your organisation's policies and procedures for safeguarding, health and safety, infection control, and medication management. If you see something that concerns you, you have a duty to report it — whether it is a safeguarding concern, a health and safety hazard, or a breach of regulations. Remaining silent when you observe poor practice is itself a failure of your duty of care.

Regulation 20 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 imposes a Duty of Candour on all registered providers. When a notifiable safety incident occurs, the provider must notify the relevant person, explain what happened, apologise, and describe what will be done to prevent recurrence. As an employee, you must support this process by reporting incidents promptly and honestly, providing accurate accounts, and cooperating fully with any investigation. Being open and transparent about mistakes is a professional and legal obligation — not an admission of liability.

While employers have overarching responsibilities, each employee is personally accountable for their own practice. You cannot hide behind organisational failures to excuse your own poor practice. The Professional Standards Authority requires that health and care professionals work within their competence, maintain their skills through continuing professional development (CPD), and act with integrity at all times. If you are asked to do something outside your scope of practice or training, you must refuse and escalate. If you make a mistake, you must report it immediately — not wait to see if it is noticed.