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While the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSS) has hailed standards to measure working conditions in the National Health Service in England, some in the NHS have queried what metrics the NHS will use. The standards will cover six areas: violence prevention and reduction; championing sexual safety; tackling racism; promoting flexible working; line management; and health and well-being support.
At the DHSS, Minister for Secondary Care Karin Smyth said: “NHS staff are the backbone of our health service, and they deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. The levels of racism, violence and sexual harassment reported by staff are completely unacceptable, and for too long there has been no formal accountability for employers to address them.
“These new standards โ a Ten Year Health Plan commitment โ change that. For the first time, how Trusts treat their employees will be measured and published, because we know that when staff are supported, patients get better care. This government is determined to make the NHS the best employer it can be, and these standards are a landmark step in delivering on that promise.
‘Must refocus’
At the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) General Secretary and Chief Executive Professor Nicola Ranger said: โZero-tolerance policies on paper have done little to improve the day-to-day experience of nursing staff.โฏ Theโฏnewโฏstandardsโฏmustโฏrefocus mindsโฏandโฏemployersโฏmustโฏwasteโฏnoโฏtime inโฏdevelopingโฏconcrete action plansโฏin partnership withโฏtheโฏRCN andโฏotherโฏtrade unionsโฏtoโฏturn things around. For far too long, staff have endured sometimes inhumane treatment at work while leadersโฏremainโฏunaware or look the other way.โฏ The impact on nursing staff hasโฏbeenโฏprofound, and ifโฏtheseโฏlevelsโฏof abuseโฏdonโtโฏchange,โฏtheyโฏwill continue to walk away from our NHS and that would be a tragedy.โ
The DHSS has acknowledged that for a second consecutive year, the NHS England staff survey saw an increase in the percentage of staff whoโd experienced violence at work, whether from patients, their relatives or other members of the public (14.47 per cent, or about one in seven).
More in the August 2026 edition of Professional Security Magazine.
Photo by Mark Rowe.
