Anne's Law - code of practice: easy read

Chapter 1: Existing Legal Network

Laws and rules which already guide care homes

Anne’s Law works together with other laws and rules that already guide what happens in care homes.

This includes laws for members of the public and specific laws for care homes.

Care homes must keep everyone healthy, safe and well. This includes:

• people who live in care homes
• staff
• visitors

Anne’s Law will become part of the rules that help care homes make good decisions.

Care homes must follow all the rights and protections that current laws already give to people.

One of these laws is the Human Rights Act 1998.

This is the law which protects our human rights in the UK.

Human Rights are the rights and freedoms that belong to every person, at every age.

Some of the important human rights that matter in care homes are listed below:

• Article 2: The Right to Life

• Article 3: People must not be harmed, abused or neglected

• Article 5: People have the right to be free and to be safe

• Article 8: People have the right to privacy and to family life

• Article 14: People must be treated fairly

The Health and Safety at Work Act means care homes must keep everyone safe from harm, including:

• people living in care homes
• staff
• visitors

Care homes must follow the Health and Social Care Standards.

These are rules which explain what people should expect from health and care services in Scotland.

The Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000 and The Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act 2007 are laws which help protect adults who may not be able to make some decisions and may be at risk of harm.

There is more information on the Care Inspectorate website about the rules and laws that care homes must follow. Government legislation | Care Inspectorate Hub

Visiting and Keeping People Safe

Care homes must follow the rules and laws even in difficult situations.

Examples of difficult situations include:

• emergencies such as fires
• new dangers such as an outbreak of an infectious disease

In some difficult situations it might be hard to decide whether care home visiting should stop.

A decision to stop or to limit visiting can harm the health and wellbeing of a person living in a care home.

It can also affect their family and friends.

However, serious risks like infections or other dangers can cause harm or even death.

Anne’s Law says that care homes must make decisions about visiting based on:

• each person’s needs
• careful thought about anything bad that might happen

When care homes are making decisions to stop visits, they must think that it is essential to stop a serious risk to the life, health or wellbeing of a person in a care home.

This means the decision to stop visiting because of a serious risk must be:

• fair
• necessary
• only for as long as needed

Care homes can, and sometimes must, ask for advice from other professionals and experts to help make these decisions.

Working with other people and experts helps care homes:

• to understand any bad things that might happen
• balance people’s rights
• keep everyone safe

Anne’s Law says that it is likely to cause serious harm if a person living in a care home cannot have visits from people who are important to them.

This includes Essential Care Supporters.

An Essential Care Supporter is someone important to a person living in a care home. It is likely to cause harm if the person living in the care home was not able to see them.