Safe and effective staffing in health and social care: analysis of responses

Overview of Consultation

Views and comments were invited from a range of stakeholders, answering as individuals or representing an organisation.

The consultation sought opinions from stakeholders on refreshed proposals on planned legislation on safe and effective staffing, building on the responses to the initial consultation covered above.

The overarching intention is for the legislation to be a further enabler of high quality care and improved outcomes for individuals. Given the importance of ensuring the right people, in the right place at the right time to deliver sustainable and high quality services with improved outcomes for service users, irrespective of setting, and of enabling integrated workforce planning, the intention is that the legislation will – in an appropriate and proportionate way - span the health and social care landscape. However, in taking this broader approach, the legislation will not be restrictive or prescriptive but rather will seek to be appropriate and enabling for the social care sector, and in particular support the recommendations in the co-produced Part 2 of the National Health and Social Care Workforce Plan.

Respondents were asked to consider the importance of a coherent legislative framework covering health and social care, monitoring of requirements, whether there should be guiding principles (and what these should cover), opinions on requirements for Health Boards, how future tools and methodologies should be developed and the support required, the inclusion of social work, and any potential risks that should be taken into account.

The questions posed were broken down into the following sections in the discussion document:

Sections 1- 2invited views on refreshed proposals that cover health and social care sectors and aim to create a cohesive legislative framework for workforce planning across health and social care.

Section 3 invited views on proposed requirements applicable to health boards.

Sections 4- 6invited views on proposals on how the legislation could apply to the social care sector.

Section 7 invited views on any risks or unintended consequences of the proposals.