Sexual safety in healthcare – organisational charter

Those who work, train and learn within the healthcare system have the right to be safe and feel supported at work.

Organisations across the healthcare system need to work together and individually to tackle unwanted, inappropriate and/or harmful sexual behaviour in the workplace.

We all have a responsibility to ourselves and our colleagues and must act if we witness these behaviours.

As signatories to this charter, we commit to a zero-tolerance approach to any unwanted, inappropriate and/or harmful sexual behaviours towards our workforce. We commit to the following principles and actions to achieve this:

  1. We will actively work to eradicate sexual harassment and abuse in the workplace.
  2. We will promote a culture that fosters openness and transparency, and does not tolerate unwanted, harmful and/or inappropriate sexual behaviours.
  3. We will take an intersectional approach to the sexual safety of our workforce, recognising certain groups will experience sexual harassment and abuse at a disproportionate rate.
  4. We will provide appropriate support for those in our workforce who experience unwanted, inappropriate and/or harmful sexual behaviours.
  5. We will clearly communicate standards of behaviour. This includes expected action for those who witness inappropriate, unwanted and/or harmful sexual behaviour.
  6. We will ensure appropriate, specific, and clear policies are in place. They will include appropriate and timely action against alleged perpetrators.
  7. We will ensure  appropriate, specific, and clear training is in place.
  8. We will ensure appropriate reporting mechanisms are in place for those experiencing these behaviours.
  9. We will take all reports seriously and appropriate and timely action will be taken in all cases.
  10. We will capture and share data on prevalence and staff experience transparently.

These commitments will apply to everyone in our organisation equally.

Where any of the above is not currently in place, we commit to work towards ensuring it is in place by July 2024.

To sign up to the charter and for more information on the national domestic abuse and sexual violence work programme, please email england.domesticabusesexualviolence@nhs.net

Further information about the Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence Programme please see the FutureNHS collaboration platform: Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence Programme – FutureNHS Collaboration Platform

Organisations that have signed the charter

1, 18 Week Support

2, Absolute Care Homes (Central) Limited

3, Airedale NHS Foundation Trust

4, Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust

5, Alliance Medical

6, Allied Health Professionals Suffolk, Community Interest Company

7, Arthur Rank Hospice Charity

8, Ashford and St. Peter’s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

9, Association of Ambulance Chief Executives

10, Association of Anaesthetists

11, Association of Breast Surgery

12, Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland

13, Aurora Medcare

14, Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust

15, Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust

16, Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

17, Barts Health NHS Trust

18, Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

19, Benenden Hospital

20, Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

21, Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust

22, Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

23, Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Trust

24, Black Country Health Care Foundation Trust

25, Black Country Integrated Care Board

26, Blackpool Teaching Hospitals

27, Bolton NHS foundation Trust

28, Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust

29, Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

30, Bridgewater Community Healthcare

31, BrisDoc Healthcare Services Ltd

32, British and Irish Orthoptic Society

33, British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons

34, British Dietetic Association

35, British Medical Association

36, British Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Society (BOMSS)

37, British Orthopaedic Association

38, British Society of Gastroenterology

39, Bromley Healthcare CIC

40, Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust

41, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and Berkshire West Integrated Care Board

42, Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust

43, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

44, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust

45, Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust

46, Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust

47, Central Medical Services Ltd

48, Central North West London NHS Foundation Trust

49, CHEC

50, Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

51, Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

52, Circle Health Group

53, City Health Care Partnership

54, College of Operating Department Practitioners

55, College of Paramedics

56, Community Hosting and Support

57, Cornwall Foundation Trust

58, Countess of Chester NHS Foundation Trust

59, County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust

60, Coventry and Warwickshire Integrated Care Board

61, Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership NHS Trust

62, Croydon Health Services

63, Cumbria, Northumberland and Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust

64, Cygnet Health Care

65, Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust

66, Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

67, Devon Partnership NHS Trust

68, DHU Healthcare

69, Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

70, Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

71, Dorset Healthcare University NHS Trust

72, Dudley Integrated Health and Care NHS Trust

73, East Cheshire NHS Trust

74, East Kent Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

75, East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust

76, East London NHS Foundation Trust

77, East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust

78, East of England Ambulance Service NHS Trust

79, East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust

80, East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust

81, Elysium Healthcare

82, Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals Foundation Trust

83, Essex Partnership University Hospital NHS Trust

84, Everyturn Mental Health

85, Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine – Member of Academy of Medical Royal Colleges

86, First Community Health and Care

87, Frimley Heath NHS Foundation Trust

88, Gateshead NHS Foundation Trust

89, Genesis Care

90, George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust

91, Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust

92, Great Ormond Street Hospital

93, Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

94, Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust

95, Guy’s and St Thomas’ Foundation Trust

96, Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

97, Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust

98, HCA Healthcare

99, Health Services Safety Investigations Body

100, Health Transportation Group UK Limited

101, Healthcare Management Trust

102, HealthShare Group

103, Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust

104, Hertfordshire Partnership NHS Trust

105, HomeLink Healthcare

106, Homerton Healthcare

107, Horder Healthcare

108, Hounslow and Richmond Community Healthcare NHS Trust

109, Hull University Teaching Hospitals

110, Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust

111, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust

112, Independent Health Group

113, Independent Healthcare Providers Network

114, InHealth Group

115, Institute of Physics and Engineering in Medicine

116, Isle of White NHS Trust

117, James Paget University Hospital

118, Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust

119, Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

120, King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

121, Kingston Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

122, Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board

123, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust

124, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

125, Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

126, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

127, Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust

128, Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust

129, Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust

130, Lincolnshire Integrated Care Board

131, Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

132, Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital

133, Liverpool University Hospitals

134, Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust

135, LivingCare Group

136, London Ambulance Service NHS Trust

137, London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust

138, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust

139, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust

140, Mayford House Surgery

141, medneo Diagnostics UK Limited

142, Medway Community Healthcare

143, Medway NHS Foundation Trust

144, Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

145, Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust

146, Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust

147, Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

148, Mid Yorkshire Teaching NHS Trust

149, Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust

150, Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

151, Navigo Health and Social Care CiC

152, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

153, NHS Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Integrated Care Board

154, NHS Birmingham and Solihull Integrated Care Board

155, NHS Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Integrated Care Board

156, NHS Dorset

157, NHS Employers

158, NHS England

159, NHS Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board

160, NHS Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board

161, NHS Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board

162, NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire Integrated Care Board

163, NHS Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board

164, NHS Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board

165, NHS Mid and South Essex Integrated Care Board

166, NHS North East London Integrated Care Board

167, NHS North West London Integrated Care Board

168, NHS Somerset Integrated Care Board

169, NHS South East London Integrated Care Board

170, NHS Sussex Integrated Care Board

171, NHS West Yorkshire Integrated Care Board

172, Nimbuscare

173, Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

174, Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust

175, North Bristol NHS Trust

176, North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust

177, North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust

178, North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board

179, North East London NHS Foundation Trust

180, North London Mental Health Partnership

181, North Middlesex University Trust

182, North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust

183, North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust

184, North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust

185, North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust

186, Northampton General Hospital

187, Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

188, Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust

189, Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust

190, Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

191, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Integrated Care Board

192, Nottingham CityCare Partnership CIC

193, Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

194, Nuffield Health

195, One Medical group

196, Oxford Health Foundation Trust

197, Oxford University Hospitals

198, Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust

199, Parkview Medical Centre

200, Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust

201, Pheonix Hospital Group

202, Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust

203, Practice Plus Group

204, Queen Elizabeth Hospital

205, Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

206, Ramsay Health Care UK

207, Rotherham, Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust

208, Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust

209, Royal College of Anaesthetists

210, Royal College of Emergency Medicine

211, Royal College of General Practitioners

212, Royal College of Nursing

213, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

214, Royal College of Ophthalmologists

215, Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health

216, Royal College of Physicians

217, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow

218, Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh

219, Royal College of Podiatry

220, Royal College of Psychiatrists

221, Royal College of Radiologists

222, Royal College of Surgeons of England

223, Royal Cornwall Hospital Trust

224, Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust

225, Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital

226, Royal Papworth Hospital

227, Royal Pharmaceutical Society

228, Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS)

229, Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust

230, Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust

231, Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust

232, Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust

233, Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust

234, Sheffield Teaching Hospitals

235, Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

236, Shropshire, Telford, and Wrekin Integrated Care Board

237, Sodexo Health and Care

238, Solent NHS Trust

239, Somerset NHS Foundation Trust

240, South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust

241, South East Coast Ambulance NHS Foundation Trust

242, South Tees Hospitals NHs Foundation Trust

243, South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust

244, South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust

245, South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust

246, South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

247, South Western Ambulance Service Foundation Trust

248, South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board

249, Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust

250, Southwest London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust

251, Spencer Private Hospitals Limited

252, Spire Healthcare Limited

253, St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

254, St Oswald’s Hospice

255, Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Integrated Care Board

256, Stockport NHS Foundation Trust

257, Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board

258, Surrey and Borders Partnership Trust

259, Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust

260, Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

261, Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust

262, Tees Esk and Wear NHS Foundation Trust

263, The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges

264, The Christie NHS Foundation Trust

265, The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Foundation Trust

266, The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust

267, The Faculty of Public Health

268, The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

269, The London Clinic

270, The New Foscote Hospital

271, The Private Clinic

272, The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust

273, The Rotherham Foundation NHS Trust

274, The Royal College of Emergency Medicine

275, The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh

276, The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust

277, The Royal Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

278, The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust

279, The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust

280, The Society of Radiographers

281, The Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust

282, The University of Manchester (Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health)

283, The University of Sheffield (Faculty of Health)

284, The Walton Centre NHS Foundation Trust

285, Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust

286, Totally Group PLC

287, Tower Hamlets GP Care Group Community Interest Company

288, Transform Healthcare

289, United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust

290, University College Hospitals London

291, University Hospital Dorset

292, University Hospital Plymouth NHS Trust

293, University Hospital Southampton

294, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust

295, University Hospitals Bristol and Weston Foundation Trust

296, University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust

297, University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust

298, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust

299, University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust

300, University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust

301, Vanguard Healthcare Solutions Ltd

302, Vascular Society of Great Britain and Ireland

303, Vita Health Group

304, Vita Healthgroup

305, Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust

306, Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

307, West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

308, West London NHS Trust

309, West Midlands Ambulance Service University NHS Foundation Trust

310, Wirral Community Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust

311, Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

312, Wolstanton Medical Centre

313, Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust

314, Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

315, Wye Valley NHS Trust

316, York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

317, Yorkshire Ambulance Service