Approved Practice Settings
The Department of Health and the General Medical Council should review whether the resources available for regulating Approved Practice Setting are adequate and, if not, make arrangements for the provision of the same. Consideration should be given to empowering the General Medical Council to charge organisations a fee for approval.
- The government's response in "Hard Truths" (Cm 8777, November 2013) stated that the Department of Health and the GMC would review whether the resources available for regulating approved practice settings were adequate and would consider empowering the GMC to charge organisations a fee for approval (Hard Truths, DHSC, November 2013).
- The Medical Profession (Responsible Officers) Regulations 2010 (SI 2010/2841, as amended by SI 2013/391) require designated bodies to appoint a responsible officer to evaluate and make recommendations about the fitness to practise of doctors connected to that body. This extends the revalidation framework to non-NHS settings, but resource adequacy for monitoring approved practice settings has not been the subject of published review since Francis (SI 2010/2841).
- No published evidence has been identified of a completed review of the adequacy of resources for regulating approved practice settings or of legislation empowering the GMC to charge fees specifically for approved practice setting approval.
How was this evidence gathered?
Response
Accepted in Part
Response
Accepted in PartThe government published "Hard Truths: the Journey to Putting Patients First" (Cm 8777) on 19 November 2013, responding to all 290 recommendations of the Francis Report. This followed an initial response "Patients First and Foremost" in March 2013. Key reforms included a new Chief Inspector of Hospitals, strengthened Care Quality Commission inspection regime, a statutory duty of candour, and the fit and proper person test for NHS directors. Volume 2 (Cm 8754) contains the government's detailed responses to each of the 290 recommendations. See: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a7cd486ed915d63cc65d167/34658_Cm_8777_Vol_1_accessible.pdf
Published Evidence
Published assessments of progress from inspectorates, select committees, official progress reports, and other sources. Source type badge indicates whether each assessment is independent or government self-reported.
Research published 2023 marking ten years since the Francis Report found mixed results. Structural and legislative changes largely delivered (duty of candour, FPPR, CQC overhaul, revalidation, Freedom to Speak Up Guardians). However, cultural change not fully embedded; understaffing, fear of speaking up, and poor complaint handling persist in parts of the NHS.
Government published "Culture Change in the NHS" (Cm 9009) reporting progress on all 290 recommendations. Key achievements: 19 hospitals placed in special measures; those trusts recruited 109 additional doctors and 1,805 additional nurses; 129 board-level changes made; excess avoidable deaths fell by 450 in less than a year.
Government published "Hard Truths: The Journey to Putting Patients First" (Cm 8777) in two volumes. Vol 1 set out new actions; Vol 2 provided detailed response to each of the 290 recommendations. Approximately 204 of 290 recommendations were fully accepted.
GMC medical revalidation launched December 2012. All licensed doctors must demonstrate fitness to practise every five years through appraisal and evidence. Francis Report endorsed and recommended strengthening revalidation.