Latest news with #NHSConfederation
The Independent
8 hours ago
- Health
- The Independent
NHS body quietly withdraws guidance over bathroom use for trans people
The NHS Confederation has revoked guidance that advised hospitals to allow trans people to use bathrooms and changing rooms of their choice. The decision follows April's Supreme Court ruling that said the words "woman" and "sex" in the Equality Act refer to biological sex, leading to disputes over equality policies. The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has issued interim guidance stating that trans women should not be permitted to use women's facilities, which is being legally challenged. Trans rights groups and legal experts have criticised the NHS Confederation's decision, warning of legal complexities and potential harm to trans people needing medical care. The NHS Confederation said it will update and reinstate its guidance once the EHRC updates its Code of Practice and NHS England provides further instructions.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
NHS Confederation and Beamtree launch data analytics platform for NHS trusts
The UK's National Health Service (NHS) Confederation has partnered with health technology company Beamtree to introduce The Evolve Collaborative, which aims to enhance the use of operational data at NHS trusts in England. The initiative is focused on offering acute care services, enhancing patient outcomes and increasing efficiency. It combines Beamtree's analytics platform with the NHS Confederation's expertise in convening and improvement, with the aim to benchmark performance, understand variations and apply data-driven enhancements to processes. NHS Confederation chief executive Matthew Taylor said: 'The Evolve Collaborative seeks to empower clinicians, boards and operations leaders with the data they need. 'The collaborative will be a driven by our members and will encourage them to be curious about who else is doing things differently, and to ask 'why'. 'By combining predictive analytics with peer learning, we're giving NHS leaders the tools and support they need to drive real, measurable improvement." The Evolve Collaborative's analytics platform uses AI and machine learning to predict future trends. This will allow NHS trusts to identify challenges and assess the potential impact of different interventions. The platform is supported by tailored dashboards and tools designed for various roles within the NHS. A key component of the partnership is the formation of peer-to-peer learning communities, which are facilitated by experts in improvement. These aim to provide a secure environment for members to exchange best practices and jointly develop solutions to common challenges. Evolve Collaborative membership is currently available to NHS Trusts and Foundation Trusts providing acute services in England. Beamtree chief executive Marek Stepniak said: 'Our experience with Health Roundtable in Australia and New Zealand has delivered measurable improvements in healthcare delivery. 'These insights have already helped providers on the other side of the world achieve tangible outcomes and we look forward to bringing this proven model of learning and collaboration to the UK." "NHS Confederation and Beamtree launch data analytics platform for NHS trusts" was originally created and published by Hospital Management, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Daily Mail
16 hours ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
NHS chiefs rip up 'pro-trans guidance' which allowed people to use toilets and changing rooms 'of their chosen gender' after Supreme Court ruling
NHS chiefs have been forced to scrap controversial 'pro-trans' guidance which allowed people to use toilets and changing rooms based on their self-identified gender - after the Supreme Court ruled such advice was effectively unlawful. The NHS Confederation, which represents health trusts across the country, has quietly withdrawn the document from its website after judges confirmed the term sex in the Equality Act refers to biological sex, not gender identity. The landmark ruling, made in April, means that trans women – who were born male – must now use male toilets and changing rooms, contradicting earlier guidance used across much of the public sector, including hospitals. The withdrawn guide had instructed NHS staff to allow trans and non-binary people to access facilities in line with their gender identity, not their sex at birth. But campaigners and women's rights groups have slammed the policy as dangerous, and are now demanding a full apology. Speaking to The Telegraph, Maya Forstater, chief executive of the campaign group Sex Matters, said: 'Its guidance encouraged a hostile, humiliating and unsafe environment for NHS workers and patients. It was published with much fanfare but withdrawn by stealth. 'NHS Confederation should now apologise publicly for undermining women's rights and the culture of care. It should also undertake to contact all NHS trusts, telling them that its guidance was flawed and that policies based on it should now be torn up.' Women's rights charities claim the guidance may have contributed to shocking workplace decisions, such as the disciplining of nurses in Darlington who had called for single-sex spaces to be respected. The original guidance, which has now been scrubbed from the NHS Confederation's website, stated: 'In all types of workplaces, trans and non-binary people should be supported to use the bathrooms they feel most comfortable using. 'At no time is it appropriate to force staff to use the toilet associated with their assigned sex at birth against their will.' It also urged NHS leaders to adopt a 'zero-tolerance attitude' to transphobia, and had promoted trust-level policies such as that from Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust, which stated: 'You are entitled to use single-sex facilities in accordance with your gender identity. 'For non-binary people, this may mean using gender-neutral or accessible facilities, or using a combination of different facilities. A non-binary person can choose to use facilities they are most comfortable using, if gender neutral facilities are not present.' A spokesman for the NHS Confederation confirmed the guidance had been withdrawn: 'We have withdrawn our guide from our website as elements of it were dated following the ruling of the Supreme Court in April and interim guidance from the EHRC. 'Our intention remains to provide our members with information that helps them best support their staff and patients, and so we will update and reinstate our guide as soon as the EHRC has updated its Code of Practice, which will need to be approved by the UK Government, and when NHS England has then updated its guidance for what the changes mean for NHS organisations. 'The withdrawal of our guide does not change our explicit commitment to support our members to reduce the unacceptably high levels of bullying, abuse and discrimination at work that trans and non-binary staff and patients face.' The spokesman added that the guide wasn't removed immediately after the ruling, as the group initially chose to flag up the outdated elements online — but later decided it was best to remove it altogether to avoid 'confusion.' Ms Forstater didn't hold back in her criticism of the document: 'NHS Confederation's now-withdrawn guidance on trans issues is among the worst we have seen. Not only did it encourage hospitals to break the law on workplace facilities, it directed NHS managers to regard anyone who correctly cited the law as a 'transphobe' and to treat them with a 'zero tolerance' approach. 'This is the approach that led to NHS staff such as Sandie Peggie and the Darlington nurses being disciplined in their workplaces simply for asserting their right to safety, dignity and privacy in single-sex facilities. 'Hospitals should always have been places where staff understood that sex matters. But NHS Confederation has been dragging its feet since the Supreme Court judgment was handed down.' The NHS is now under pressure to issue updated guidance in line with the new legal ruling. Health Secretary Wes Streeting has said he wants revised advice in place by the summer. Meanwhile, other public bodies have already begun making changes including the Football Association, which has announced trans women will now be banned from competing in women's football.
Telegraph
a day ago
- Business
- Telegraph
NHS chiefs forced to rip up trans guidance
NHS chiefs have been forced to rip up their pro-trans guidance after it was rendered illegal by the Supreme Court ruling. The NHS Confederation, which represents trusts, has quietly withdrawn guidance telling hospitals that they should allow trans people to use their chosen toilets and changing rooms. The group told The Telegraph it had taken the guide down from its website because it had become 'dated' since the Supreme Court judgment that the word sex in the Equality Act means biological sex. Reached in April, the decision means trans women, who were born male, should use men's toilets and changing rooms, contradicting the previous stance of a string of public sector organisations. The confederation's advice is now being updated in line with the Supreme Court ruling and new guidance from the Equality and Human Rights Commission, and will be published later. On Thursday night, women's rights charities demanded that the confederation apologise for the guidance, which they claimed may have led to unfair decisions, such as the case of Darlington nurses who were disciplined for demanding single-sex facilities. They said that rather than deleting the guidance, the confederation should actively inform all trusts that it was now null and void. Maya Forstater, the chief executive of Sex Matters, said: 'Its guidance encouraged a hostile, humiliating and unsafe environment for NHS workers and patients. It was published with much fanfare but withdrawn by stealth. 'NHS Confederation should now apologise publicly for undermining women's rights and the culture of care. It should also undertake to contact all NHS trusts, telling them that its guidance was flawed and that policies based on it should now be torn up.' A growing number of public bodies are changing their guidance in light of the Supreme Court judgment, including the Football Association, which has said trans women would be banned from women's sport. However, neither NHS England nor the NHS Confederation have put forward new guidance. Wes Streeting, the Health Secretary, has said he wants the new guidance in place by the summer. The confederation's now-withdrawn guidance stated: 'In all types of workplaces, trans and non-binary people should be supported to use the bathrooms they feel most comfortable using. At no time is it appropriate to force staff to use the toilet associated with their assigned sex at birth against their will.' It also tells management, senior healthcare leaders and human resources directors to take a 'zero-tolerance attitude' to transphobia. The confederation also promoted individual trusts' guidance, such as Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust, which said: 'You are entitled to use single-sex facilities in accordance with your gender identity. 'For non-binary people, this may mean using gender-neutral or accessible facilities, or using a combination of different facilities. A non-binary person can choose to use facilities they are most comfortable using, if gender neutral facilities are not present.' 'Will not change our commitment' A spokesman for the confederation said: 'We have withdrawn our guide from our website as elements of it were dated following the ruling of the Supreme Court in April and interim guidance from the EHRC. 'Our intention remains to provide our members with information that helps them best support their staff and patients, and so we will update and reinstate our guide as soon as the EHRC has updated its Code of Practice, which will need to be approved by the UK Government, and when NHS England has then updated its guidance for what the changes mean for NHS organisations. 'The withdrawal of our guide does not change our explicit commitment to support our members to reduce the unacceptably high levels of bullying, abuse and discrimination at work that trans and non-binary staff and patients face.' The spokesman said the guidance had not been taken down immediately after the Supreme Court ruling because the initial response had been to keep it on the NHS Confederation website with acknowledgements that certain elements of it had become dated. It was later decided that to avoid the risk of any confusion, it was best to remove the guide in its entirety and update it later. Ms Forstater said: 'NHS Confederation's now-withdrawn guidance on trans issues is among the worst we have seen. Not only did it encourage hospitals to break the law on workplace facilities, it directed NHS managers to regard anyone who correctly cited the law as a 'transphobe' and to treat them with a 'zero tolerance' approach. 'This is the approach that led to NHS staff such as Sandie Peggie and the Darlington nurses being disciplined in their workplaces simply for asserting their right to safety, dignity and privacy in single-sex facilities. 'Hospitals should always have been places where staff understood that sex matters. But NHS Confederation has been dragging its feet since the Supreme Court judgment was handed down.'
The Independent
19-05-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Government's NHS aims ‘need investment in mental health services'
The Government's aims for the NHS – to shift care from hospitals into the community and to prevent ill health – can be accelerated through better investment in mental health services, a report says. The study, from the Centre for Mental Health and the NHS Confederation, argues there are six areas where investment in the upcoming Government spending review represents good value for money. These include supporting the mental health of new mothers and pregnant women, expanding early support hubs for young people, and investing in community mental health services to reduce demand on A&Es and hospitals. Other measures include parenting programmes, such as one called Incredible Years which has been shown to benefit families, expanding NHS talking therapies and offering mental health support for workers. According to the report, demand for mental health services among both adults and children is on the rise. For example, referrals to mental health services in England increased from 4.4 million a year in 2016-17 to 6.4 million in 2021-22, it said. There has also been an 'alarming' increase in the number of children and young people attending at A&E with mental health needs – they spent more than 900,000 hours in A&E in 2022. Analysis by the Centre for Mental Health found that, in 2022, the cost of mental ill health in England was £300 billion – double the NHS's entire budget for England in that same year. This included economic costs of £110 billion, some £130 billion related to reduced quality of life and premature death among people living with mental health problems, and health and care costs of £60 billion. The report argues that investing in community alternatives to hospital care could offer significant savings to the NHS and help the Government achieve its aims. Andy Bell, chief executive of the Centre for Mental Health, said: 'Mental health is a good investment. 'Targeted investment in proven interventions and priority areas will ensure that money is well spent with positive outcomes for people's mental health and extensive economic benefits. 'From parenting programmes to employment support, and from talking therapies to crisis care, the priorities we have identified will make a long-lasting difference.' Rebecca Gray, mental health director at the NHS Confederation, said: 'The economic, social and health case for investing in mental health services has long been clear, but this report is yet more evidence of the impact it can have. 'We know that as well as costing the country an estimated £300 billion, mental ill health is one of the biggest drivers of economic inactivity. 'This means tackling long waiting lists for mental health treatment is not only good for patients but the economy as well. 'The upcoming spending review and 10-year plan are a fantastic opportunity to invest in shifting resources upstream to improve the nation's mental health. 'The investment areas we have set out with the Centre for Mental Health are areas we know will not only improve care for people with mental ill health but also pay dividends economically and societally as well.' A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said the Government had inherited a 'broken' mental health system and was determined to fix it. He added: 'To ensure people are getting appropriate care we're investing £26 billion in the NHS, including in mental health services and recruiting 8,500 mental health workers. 'Through our Plan for Change, we are moving care out of hospital and into the community including by investing in talking therapies to support an extra 380,000 patients on top of £26 million for new mental health crisis centres. 'As part of our shift towards prevention, we are providing access to specialist mental health support in every school and creating a network of mental health hubs.'
