Care Quality Commission and EHRC consult on new human rights guidance

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has joined with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) to create new guidance for social care inspectors and assessors.

Once published, the guidance will be used by inspectors when they monitor care providers under the CQC's standards and registration requirements.

The new guidance includes:

• An overview of how the CQC's essential standards relate to equality and human rights law and what inspectors and assessors should do if they think it has been breached
• Information about equality and human rights for each of the key sections of our essential standards
• detailed charts which map the equality and human rights dimensions of the essential standards
• Prompts that inspectors and assessors can use about equality and human rights – complementary to the prompts in the essential standards of quality and safety.

Neil Kinghan, Director General of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said: “We welcome all feedback and suggestions; from inspectors and assessors at CQC or those working in similar bodies; from managers and staff across the English health and social care sectors; and, most of all from people who use these vital services.  The more we can improve this guidance, the more useful it will be helping inspectors to secure high quality and safe care for all, as well as promoting the EHRC’s objectives in equalities and human rights.”

The consultation closes on 12 November 2010. The draft guidance can be found here: http://www.equalityhumanrights.com/human-rights/new-guidance-for-inspectors-and-assessors/