Recommendation P2-21: NHS England incorporate deceased in safeguarding framework
From Fuller Inquiry Phase 2 Report, published 15 July 2025.
Recommendation
NHS England should formally incorporate the safeguarding of deceased people into its safeguarding framework for NHS trusts.
In brief (written by this site)
In July 2026, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State Preet Kaur Gill stated that NHS England had issued a national system letter setting out actions expected of trusts and providers (Preet Kaur Gill, Jul 2026). It reported in June 2026 that its safeguarding framework "was updated to include reference to the deceased" in April 2026 (NHS England, Jun 2026). Earlier, in December 2025, the Department of Health and Social Care accepted the recommendation in principle, noting that further work was required to determine the full impact (Department of Health and Social Care response, Dec 2025).
AI-generated summary of the record on this page, checked by a second model and automatic checks, 26 Sep 2026. The record below is the sources' own words.
Government response
The government has agreed to accept in principle 43 recommendations subject to further work to determine the full impact of these recommendations.
How this response relates to the recommendation
Site note: This is the Department of Health and Social Care's interim update on government progress in responding to the phase 2 report, published on 16 December 2025. It sorts the 75 recommendations into those the government has accepted in full (11), accepted in principle (43) and is still considering (21), and gives words of its own only on the 11 accepted in full. Every word is the Department's, so the rows are filed under it, including where the passage reports what another body has done.
Site note: The recommendation is addressed to NHS England; the passage is the Department's account, not that body's. The update gives this sentence once, under its heading "Recommendations accepted in principle", and lists this recommendation there among the 43 it covers. It says nothing about this recommendation alone.
Delivery
Department of Health and Social Care says in progress (15 July 2026)
NHS England has also issued a national system letter setting out the actions expected of each NHS trust and providers to ensure improvements are delivered consistently.
From: Government update on Progress in responding to the Fuller Inquiry Phase 2 report, Preet Kaur Gill, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health Innovation and Safety
Site note: Written ministerial statement HCWS261, made on 15 July 2026 by the Department of Health and Social Care. It gives no per-recommendation breakdown, and it says the Government "remains committed to providing a full response to Sir Jonathan Michael's report once the leadership period for Prime Minister has concluded". That full response had not been published when these rows were recorded.
Site note: The source does not name this recommendation by number. It is recorded here because it addresses the actions expected of NHS trusts, which are the subject of recommendations 1 to 21. The source gives this passage once, for several recommendations. The same words are recorded on recommendations 1 to 21.
NHS England says in progress (26 June 2026)
In April 2026, the SAAF was updated to include reference to the deceased.
Site note: NHS England's national system letter to NHS trusts and integrated care boards of 26 June 2026 (PRN02500). Its Annex 2 maps the NHS-relevant Fuller recommendations to named supporting guidance by number. The letter instructs trusts and records what NHS England has changed; it does not report that any recommendation is delivered. Neither the Board Assurance Statement returns it asks trusts for by 31 July 2026 nor the Premises Assurance Model submissions that closed on 8 September 2026 are published. Where the row carries an Annex 2 entry, it is the whole entry: the recommendations it covers, where their text is, and the guidance NHS England maps them to. An entry that only names guidance states no delivery position, and the site marks it noted.
Site note: The source does not name this recommendation by number. It is recorded here because it addresses the NHS Safeguarding Accountability and Assurance Framework, which this recommendation asks NHS England to extend to deceased people.
Responsible bodies
Themes and tags
Who has spoken
- Department of Health and Social Care
Response, delivery statement - NHS England
Delivery statement