05/05/2026
Bevan Brittan provides high quality, comprehensive advice to the NHS, independent healthcare sector and local authorities. This update contains brief details of recent Government publications, legislation, cases and other developments relevant to those involved in health and social care work, both in the NHS, independent sector and local authorities which have been published in the last month.
If someone forwarded you this email you can sign up for your own free monthly copy here delivered directly to your inbox.
For insights and updates from across the health and care sector, follow our dedicated Health & Care LinkedIn page today.
Bevan Brittan Free Training Events
There is no charge for any of the events listed below
Webinars
These are internal hour long lunch time training sessions. You can sign up to watch the training sessions remotely via our webinar facility by clicking on the links below.
Watch on Catch Up!
- Psychiatry for Lawyers – An update on common conditions and treatments and recent cases.
- Employment Law Update
- Understanding Executive Function and How its Dysfunction Might Impact Capacity.
Please note that registration for each webinar will close one hour before the webinar starts, so please do ensure you have booked your place in advance to guarantee attendance.
Acute and urgent care
Publications/Guidance
What’s the emergency when prisoners go to A&E? A&E attendances by people in prisons in England.
There are huge pressures facing prison health services. This new report is the first to offer an in-depth assessment of A&E use by people in prison and adds to mounting evidence that health care is harder for prisoners to access. It finds a higher-than-expected number of A&E attendances by prisoners due to paracetamol overdose, seizures, and acute coronary syndrome, with opportunities for targeted intervention in these areas to avoid health crises.
How we can help
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around acute and urgent care please contact Claire Bentley.
Children and young people
Publications/Guidance
Post-traumatic stress disorder. The Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health (ACAMH) has published a blog focusing on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in young children. The blog explores what PTSD in young children looks like, the challenges of assessing trauma in young children, and current research into effective treatment approaches for PTSD in children aged 3- to 8-years-old.
Online harms and healthcare. The RCPCH has published a short report exploring the views of paediatricians on how online harms are impacting children in hospital clinics. An online survey of RCPCH members asked about the benefits and risks of children being online and using social media, and the impact on children’s health services. Of the 60 responses received, nearly half of the paediatricians said that they spoke to children and young people often or very often in consultations about their online activity or social media use, with case studies and examples given most commonly linked to: self harm and suicidality; mental health presentations such as anxiety, depression and eating disorders; bullying and peer conflict; and safeguarding and exploitation concerns. The paper concludes that while being online can bring clear benefits and children have a right to those benefits, current social media environments pose significant risks to children’s health and wellbeing. Recommendations for government include making online experiences suitable for different ages by mandating child-friendly principles and removing the commercial incentives for harmful digital design.
IOPC and Safeguarding Advisory Framework. This Advisory Framework has been developed by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) and the Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel to support safeguarding partners in delivering local safeguarding arrangements in England.
Children’s mental health services. The Children’s Commissioner for England has published a report on children and young people’s mental health services, examining referrals, access to treatment, waiting times, and service investment in England between 2024 and 2025. The report looks at children’s journeys through mental health services and how these differ depending on what they were referred for, their age, gender, ethnic background and the area-level deprivation where they live. It highlights that while more children are receiving treatment than in previous years, services have not been able to match demand and more children are now waiting for treatment, and waiting for longer. The report calls for changes including: a joint national strategy and outcomes framework for children’s mental health and wellbeing; and effective implementation of reforms to the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities system.
Building a preventative mental health system for children and young people. This report, prepared for the Child of the North All-Party Parliamentary Group, finds that nearly one in five primary school children are now experiencing a probable mental health disorder. Children and young people growing up in disadvantaged communities, particularly across parts of the North of England, are more likely to experience cumulative adversity, poorer wellbeing, and reduced access to support.
Children’s social care. Ofsted has published a report analysing children’s social care sufficiency in England. The report presents a new index to measure the sufficiency of children’s social care provision, looking at how availability, workforce, placement suitability, and safety impact sufficiency. It also analyses regional variation in children’s social care provision and access to placements, and the structural and system pressures shaping where and how children are placed. Findings show that sufficiency in children’s social care is shaped by a complex set of factors that influence whether children can be given placements that are safe, appropriate and close to home.
Children's services. The County Councils Network has published a report exploring early intervention and prevention in children’s services in England. It examines how the children’s services system could prevent more children from entering care and support more children to return to their families after being in care. Using insights from data analysis and over 100 case reviews, the report highlights opportunities for local authorities and their partners to provide earlier and more coordinated support. Key recommendations include: more fully integrate schools into support systems; invest in preventative services; improve data sharing; focus more on parental support; and build trust and engagement with families. Key findings include: implementation of proposed changes could enable more than 6,000 additional parents each year to receive specialist support, which could prevent 2,250 children from entering care annually, a reduction of 14.5%; and proposed changes could deliver cumulative financial benefits of £4.7bn by 2035 through avoided care placement costs.
Child protection framework: consultation. The Department for Education (DfE) has launched a consultation on proposed updates to the statutory framework for help, support and protection of children in England. This consultation will inform updates to ‘Working together to safeguard children’, the ‘Children’s social care national framework’ and policy underpinning the development of multi-agency child protection team regulations. It is open to people who work in local authorities, health, police, education and voluntary organisations, as well as parents and carers. There is a separate survey for children and young people to share their views. The consultation closes on 4 September 2026.
Supporting pupils with medical conditions at school: Government consultation response. A Department for Education (DfE) publication summarises the consultation responses on updates to its statutory guidance for supporting pupils in England with medical conditions, and sets out the Government response. The DfE will proceed with amendments to the statutory guidance, with key changes such as: introducing guidelines on allergy safety, removing the proposed named governor requirement, retaining named senior leaders, and seeking legislation extending Children and Families Act 2014 s.100 duties to further education and post-16 providers, non-maintained special schools and independent schools.
How we can help
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around children please contact Deborah Jeremiah or Callum Scott .
Clinical Risk / Patient Safety
Publications/Guidance
Infected Blood Inquiry: compensation. The Infected Blood Public Inquiry recommended that the government should set up a compensation scheme for those infected and affected by contaminated blood, blood products and tissue. The government accepted this recommendation and made regulations to establish the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme in August 2024. This research briefing on infected blood compensation examines the design and implementation of the compensation scheme. A separate Commons Library research briefing examines recommendations made by the inquiry that are focused on improving safety and patient care: Infected Blood Inquiry: recommendations for recognition, healthcare and patient safety.
Minimum standards for planned patient care. An NHS England publication details standards which set out what patients and carers should expect when patients are referred for planned (non-urgent) NHS care in England. For the first time, the standards set a benchmark for knowing what is happening and who to turn to. All NHS trusts will now be asked to publish a summary annually of their performance towards the eight new standards, to ensure transparency for patients and the public about how their local services are performing. The guidance is part of an initiative to redesign the way the public experiences and interacts with the health service, alongside reforms to improve their care and reduce waiting times.
Independent Investigation into Maternity and Neonatal Services in England: final report and recommendations. Baroness Amos (chair of this investigation) has found that the maternity and neonatal system in England is no longer fit to consistently deliver high-quality, compassionate care to every woman and family, and requires urgent reform to put safety at its centre, embed a focus on listening to women, and ensure anti-racist practice at every level. This report highlights key areas of concern, identifies barriers to delivering change and sets out a robust package of eight recommendations aimed at delivering long-term systemic and cultural transformation in maternity and neonatal care for the 21st century. The report also includes an additional set of actions that can be taken now, which will make a significant difference to the experience of women and families and the ability of staff to provide safe care.
IMR publishes Ockenden Report reviewing maternity services at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust. The Independent Maternity Review, chaired by Donna Ockenden, has published its independent report reviewing maternity services at the Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust. The report covers care provided in 2,026 clinical cases from 2012–25 involving nearly 2,500 families. It identifies systemic failures in governance, leadership and culture, with suboptimal care found in 21% of maternity cases reviewed. The report outlines system-wide learnings and local actions for learning that staff at the trust must undertake. It issues 18 immediate and essential actions for England's maternity services across eight areas including staffing, governance, incident investigation and post-death care, with Martha's Rule as the overarching escalation principle.
Lord Mann review on antisemitism and other forms of racism in the NHS. An urgent review led by Lord John Mann examining how the NHS, including employers and UK health regulators, identify, report and respond to antisemitism and other forms of racism.
Time to clear the tables: why NHS league rankings don’t work. Last year, the government introduced league tables rating the performance of NHS trusts in England. This long read argues that the tables are a poor guide to the quality of care that patients can expect.
News
NHS Resolution response to the Ockenden-led review of maternity services
Martha's Rule extended to all maternity services. Landmark patient safety initiative, Martha's Rule, rolled out to all maternity settings after review found serious and sustained failures.
Court and tribunal fees: updates from July 2026. The Ministry of Justice plans to make a series of changes to court and tribunal fees payable in HM Courts and Tribunals Service.
Bevan Brittan Updates
How we can help
We are working with clients on formulating policies and making it easier to balance treatment with finite resources. We are helping with social care policies and day to day activities such as contact and isolation, human rights issues and life/death decisions. We are working on notifications of harm and death, RIDDOR, CQC compliance, judicial review, infection control law and grappling with the new regulations and guidance. For more information click here.
If you wish to discuss any clinical risk or patient safety issues please contact Joanne Easterbrook or Daniel Morris.
Commissioning and Integrated Care
Publications/Guidance
NHS Oversight Framework 2026/27. NHS England's updated 2026/27 framework aims to set out a clear and transparent approach for assessing integrated care boards (ICBs) and NHS providers to help ensure accountability and supporting performance improvement. It explains how NHS England will evaluate organisations using agreed metrics, helping to identify both high performers and those needing support. The framework is aligned with national priorities, including the Medium Term Planning Framework, while also considering broader measures such as inequalities and long-term outcomes, with an emphasis on strengthening local autonomy. Assessments to guide NHS England's engagement with organisations throughout the year, will be based on organisational performance segments and leadership capability. The framework is intended to evolve and will be reviewed for 2027/28 to reflect potential changes in the roles of NHS England, the Department of Health and Social Care, and ICBs.
Code. This code sets out the core principles and behaviours expected of every leader and manager within our health and care system. The code equips you with the non-negotiable principles that underpin good leadership and management. It gives specific examples of what effective and ineffective practice looks like. It is relevant to all clinical, non-clinical and social care roles.
How we can help
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around commissioning or integrated care, please contact Anna Davies or Katrina McCrory
Digital Health
Publications/guidance
Artificial intelligence guidance for health and care professionals. Artificial intelligence (AI) is the use of digital technology to create systems capable of performing tasks commonly thought to require human intelligence. This guidance focuses on the information governance implications of using AI in health and care settings, and should help support the lawful and safe use of data for AI innovations.
Closing the AI liability gap: AI, safety, and the case for legislative change. This report argues that UK law has not kept pace with the rapid growth of AI in health care. It calls for legal reform to treat AI systems as products and ensure liability is fairly shared among developers, manufacturers, and users, arguing this would improve fairness, encourage safer AI design, increase clinician confidence in using AI, and ultimately support better patient care.
AI to speed up cancer diagnosis for millions of NHS patients. Government invests in AI technologies to modernise the NHS and reduce waiting times.
Pioneering AI health innovations regulatory sandbox launched. The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has announced a London regulatory sandbox, in partnership with NHS England and the London Health Innovation Networks, to test AI-enabled medical devices in live NHS clinical settings. The London Region I programme will select up to 10 AI medical device manufacturers for its initial phase, match technologies with NHS providers, generate real-world evidence on safety, effectiveness and benefit, and support a clearer route to wider adoption while maintaining MHRA oversight. Expressions of interest from NHS providers and manufacturers will open in July 2026.
News
Survey of nursing and midwifery workforce seeks views on AI and workplaces.
First complaints made over clinician use of AI
Bevan Brittan Updates
Al in Healthcare: are we asking the wrong question? - Dan Morris
How we can help
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around Digital Health please contact Daniel Morris.
Employment/HR
Publications/guidance
The NHS workforce in numbers. Facts and figures on staffing numbers in the NHS in England.
NHS Resolution's Practitioner Performance Advice Service has published a revised Fairness and Proportionality Framework, along with new case studies, to support the local management of performance concerns. The revised Framework has the same five Principles but the format has been amended based on feedback from stakeholders. We have also published an Insight publication which shares findings from an evaluation of the Fairness and Proportionality Framework, highlighting how it has been used in practice, what difference it is making, and how our revised resources respond to what organisations told us they need.
Lord Mann review on antisemitism and other forms of racism in the NHS. An urgent review led by Lord John Mann examining how the NHS, including employers and UK health regulators, identify, report and respond to antisemitism and other forms of racism.
Immigration and the NHS: the evidence. The NHS is often part of debates about immigration and its impact in the UK. This briefing reviews existing research and analyses publicly available data to assess the relationship between immigration and the NHS. Overall, evidence suggests immigration makes a positive contribution. The average person who migrates to the UK is more likely to work in the NHS, less likely to use health services and contributes significantly to NHS funding. NHS pressures are largely down to funding constraints, workforce shortages and changing health needs.
The work-related quality of life of the adult social care workforce in England in 2025: findings from the wave 2 survey. The Adult Social Care Workforce Survey was designed to collect information from people working in adult social care about different aspects of their employment, work-related quality of life and wellbeing. The second wave of the survey was conducted by Ipsos in association with Skills for Care and the University of Kent and ran from August to October 2025. Over 3,000 responses were collected from a diverse range of workers.
NHS staff standards. The NHS staff standards set national minimum employment requirements to improve staff experience, outlining employer actions and what staff can expect.
NHS sets first-ever staff standards to tackle racism and violence. New NHS staff standards will make employers accountable for tackling racism, violence and sexual harassment, with results published in league tables.
Consultants vote for industrial action. Medical consultants have voted in favour of industrial action over pay and working conditions, the British Medical Association has announced.
How we can help
We can offer support and advice on managing many workforce issues including flexing your workforce to respond to the pandemic, managing bank staff, redeployment, vulnerable groups, sick pay, leave options, supporting staff well-being, presenteeism, remote and home working, through FAQs, helpline or policy guidance and practical day to day advice.
If you wish to discuss any employment issues generally please contact Jodie Sinclair, Alastair Currie, James Gutteridge, Andrew Uttley, Joanna Burrows and Lee Carroll.
Health Inequalities
Publications/Guidance
The state of mental health inequality in the UK. This report says that mental health in the UK has worsened over the past 15 years, but this picture is not shared evenly across society. This report presents analyses of mental health trends across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland from 2009 to 2024, using data from Understanding Society: the UK Household Longitudinal Study.
How we can help
We have a multidisciplinary team advising NHS commissioners and providers on all aspects of tackling health inequalities, ranging from:
- advising on the new legal framework and compliance with the relevant statutory duties, particularly in the context of service reconfiguration;
- addressing workforce inequalities;
- taking action on patient safety to reduce health inequalities;
- the role of the Care Quality Commission in tackling health inequalities; and
- lessons to be learnt from the Covid-19 pandemic.
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around health inequalities please contact Julia Jones.
Housing
Publications/Guidance
Homes, not harm: how London’s broken housing system is failing people of colour. This report looks at the housing system in London. It focuses on London’s communities of colour, who have found themselves disproportionately shut out from the promise of stable, healthy homes and the generational wealth that home ownership typically provides, and who have instead been left trapped in an unstable, increasingly overpriced rental sector. It highlights the impact that poor housing can have on a person: on physical health, such as respiratory problems; on mental health, including stress, anxiety and depression; and on financial health, such as the inability to save after facing excessive service charges, rent and bills.
Building health into homes: practitioner toolkit. Homes shape what people can do, how safe they feel and how well they can live. When homes are cold, damp, unsafe or inaccessible, the impact on health, wellbeing and participation can be huge. This toolkit aims to support occupational therapists in all practice settings to have earlier, preventative conversations about housing. It includes a conversation framework, learning from lived experience and a housing glossary.
How we can help
We have a multidisciplinary team advising NHS commissioners and providers on all aspects of tackling health inequalities, ranging from:
- advising on the new legal framework and compliance with the relevant statutory duties, particularly in the context of service reconfiguration;
- addressing workforce inequalities;
- taking action on patient safety to reduce health inequalities;
- the role of the Care Quality Commission in tackling health inequalities; and
- lessons to be learnt from the Covid-19 pandemic.
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around housing and health, please contact Julia Jones.
Information sharing/data
Publications and guidance
Estimated impact of the introduction of the single patient record. Methodology behind the estimated figures for financial and clinical hours saved, and A&E and hospital visits lessened, from introducing the single patient record.
How we can help
Our specialist team brings a unique combination of experience and skill from across the health, social care, and local authority sectors to help you meet the wide ranging challenges faced organisationally as you deal with the various and complex legislation in respect of information law. That team understands the practical way those legal frameworks impact the range of issues faced, as well as the diverse nature of both public and regulatory expectation in relation to “personal data”, “data protection”, “freedom of information”, “access to health records” and wider “information governance”. As well as assisting your organisation in dealing with challenging requests for disclosure, we can also help to provide strategic advice in relation to policy and information security, as well as bespoke organisational training on key legal issues.
If you wish to discuss any information law and / or governance issues facing your organisation, and how we may help, please contact Jane Bennett.
Inquests and Inquiries
Bevan Brittan Updates
National Inquiry into Grooming Gangs is Launched - Stuart Marchant
How we can help
Our specialist team brings a unique combination of experience and skill from across the health, social care, and local authority sectors to help you meet the wide ranging challenges faced organisationally as you deal with the various and complex legislation in respect of information law. That team understands the practical way those legal frameworks impact the range of issues faced, as well as the diverse nature of both public and regulatory expectation in relation to “personal data”, “data protection”, “freedom of information”, “access to health records” and wider “information governance”. As well as assisting your organisation in dealing with challenging requests for disclosure, we can also help to provide strategic advice in relation to policy and information security, as well as bespoke organisational training on key legal issues.
If If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around inquests, please contact Amanda Wright- Kluger, Tracey Longfield or Claire Leonard.
Mental Health
Publications/Guidance
Changes to the definition of deprivation of liberty. Update following the Supreme Court judgment on 2 June 2026 clarifying the definition of the deprivation of liberty.
Independent review into mental health conditions, ADHD and autism: interim report. Interim report outlining progress on the independent review into the prevalence and support for mental health conditions, ADHD and autism.
The state of mental health inequality in the UK. This report says that mental health in the UK has worsened over the past 15 years, but this picture is not shared evenly across society. This report presents analyses of mental health trends across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland from 2009 to 2024, using data from Understanding Society: the UK Household Longitudinal Study.
Children’s mental health services. The Children’s Commissioner for England has published a report on children and young people’s mental health services, examining referrals, access to treatment, waiting times, and service investment in England between 2024 and 2025. The report looks at children’s journeys through mental health services and how these differ depending on what they were referred for, their age, gender, ethnic background and the area-level deprivation where they live. It highlights that while more children are receiving treatment than in previous years, services have not been able to match demand and more children are now waiting for treatment, and waiting for longer. The report calls for changes including: a joint national strategy and outcomes framework for children’s mental health and wellbeing; and effective implementation of reforms to the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities system.
Bevan Brittan Updates
Key Takeaways from DHSC guidance published 15 June 2026 - Hannah Taylor
How we can help
We are experts in advising commissioners, providers and care co-ordinators on the relevant legal frameworks. We deal with complex issues such as deprivation of liberty, state involvement, use of CCTV monitoring, seclusion, physical restraint and covert medication. We can help providers with queries about admission and detention, consent to treatment, forensic service users, transfers, leave, discharge planning and hearings. We can advise commissioners on all matters concerning commissioning responsibility, liability and disputes. For more information click here
If you wish to discuss any mental health issues facing your organisation please contact Hannah Taylor or Simon Lindsay
Social Care
Publications/Guidance
Independent Commission on Adult Social Care: Second Report of Session 2026-27. A Health and Social Care Committee report has urged the next Prime Minister to ensure adult social care reform proposals are published well before 2028 and not delayed until the next general election. It said Baroness Casey should be free to publish both phases of her Independent Commission report as soon as they are ready, and departments should facilitate that process. The Committee warned that delay would reduce prospects of political and public consensus, risk excluding reforms from the 2027 Spending Review, and prolong pressures on unpaid carers, care workers and people needing support.
The size and structure of the adult social care sector and workforce in England. According to this report, the vacancy rate in England’s adult social care sector has fallen to its lowest level in a decade. It also shows that the workforce continued to grow in 2025/26, marking the fourth consecutive year of expansion. There were 22,000 more filled posts than the previous year - an increase of 1.4%, although this is the slowest growth rate in four years. It also highlights a drop in vacancies. However, vacancy levels in adult social care remain around three times higher than the wider economy, underlining the continued challenge of recruitment and retention within the sector.
Care to share: building the National Care Service. This briefing contains articles by experts and policy makers which identify the decisions the government will need to get right, covering topics including funding, charging and the social care workforce. A number of contributors pick up on the theme of urgency: as Labour approaches the midpoint of its first term in office, they argue that social care must not be sacrificed due to any future election campaigns.
The work-related quality of life of the adult social care workforce in England in 2025: findings from the wave 2 survey. The Adult Social Care Workforce Survey was designed to collect information from people working in adult social care about different aspects of their employment, work-related quality of life and wellbeing. The second wave of the survey was conducted by Ipsos in association with Skills for Care and the University of Kent and ran from August to October 2025. Over 3,000 responses were collected from a diverse range of workers.
How we can help
For ways in which we can help with Social Care issues click here.
If you wish to discuss any queries you may have around social care please contact Claire Bentley.
General
Bevan Brittan Updates
SIGN UP FOR PUBLICATIONS
If you would like to sign up for any of our Bevan Brittan publications including this Health and Care Update click here.
