Watchdogs publish guidance for care inspectors on equality and human rights

The Equality and Human Rights Commission and the Care Quality Commission have published guidance for care inspectors on equality and human rights, in a bid to ensure that vulnerable people have their rights upheld and respected.

Publication of the guidance comes after an interim report in June 2011 from the EHRC’s Home Care inquiry found that human rights were not being respected in the delivery of care.

Baroness Sally Greengross, Commissioner with the EHRC, said: “CQC inspectors will now be trained to look for any breaches in equality and human rights law and know what action to take if they find any. This was not previously the case and will provide for more robust future monitoring. It should also make care providers more vigilant.”

She added that the guidance would help address the findings of the interim report, which she described as “disturbing”.

The two organisations said the guidance would help CQC inspectors to “clearly link effective equality and human rights compliance with high-quality, safe services and sets out exactly what they have to look for when monitoring a care provider against standards”.

The document, which was subject to a 12-week consultation and piloted in eight CQC reviews, also sets out what inspectors should do if they suspect a human rights violation or find a breach in standards.