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DC111-Secondary Employment, Outside Interests and Conflicts of Interest Policy

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Registration Number: {{org_field_registration_no}}

Secondary Employment, Outside Interests and Conflicts of Interest Policy

1. Introduction and Purpose

{{org_field_name}} is committed to maintaining high standards of integrity, openness, professional conduct and safe care. Employees and other workers may undertake secondary employment or hold outside interests, provided that these arrangements do not create an actual, potential or perceived conflict of interest; compromise the safety, dignity, rights or well-being of people using the service; affect the worker’s fitness to work; result in excessive working hours or insufficient rest; interfere with attendance, reliability or performance; misuse confidential information; or damage the legitimate interests or reputation of {{org_field_name}}.

This policy establishes a fair and proportionate process for declaring, assessing, approving, recording, monitoring and reviewing secondary employment and other outside interests. It is intended to support compliance with employment law, data protection law and the requirements applying to registered providers under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations.

Nothing in this policy creates a blanket prohibition on secondary employment. Each declaration will be considered individually, objectively and proportionately, taking account of the worker’s contractual terms, employment status, statutory rights, working arrangements and any identifiable risks to people using the service.

1.1 Regulatory objectives

This policy supports the organisation’s arrangements for:

2. Scope of the Policy

This policy applies, so far as relevant to their employment or contractual arrangements, to all employees, workers, casual workers, bank staff, agency workers, apprentices, volunteers, consultants, contractors, directors and other persons engaged by or working on behalf of {{org_field_name}}.

This policy covers:

Ordinary personal activities that have no reasonable connection with the worker’s duties and present no actual, potential or perceived conflict do not normally require declaration. Where a worker is uncertain, they should seek advice from their line manager or the registered manager before commencing or continuing the activity.

3. Definitions

For the purposes of this policy:

4. Declaration and Approval of Secondary Employment and Outside Interests

Workers must make a written declaration where they undertake, or propose to undertake, secondary employment or hold an outside interest that may be relevant to their duties. Declarations must be complete, accurate and submitted at the earliest reasonable opportunity.

Declaration before commencement

Subject to the statutory protections concerning exclusivity terms, workers must declare proposed secondary employment or relevant outside interests before commencing the activity. Existing secondary employment or interests must be declared:

The declaration must be submitted to the worker’s line manager, the registered manager or the person designated by {{org_field_name}}. Where the declaration concerns the line manager or registered manager, it must be submitted to a more senior manager, director or nominated responsible person.

Information required

The worker must provide sufficient information to allow a proportionate assessment, including:

Assessment and decision

The organisation will assess the declaration fairly, consistently and without unreasonable delay. The assessment will consider:

Possible outcomes

Following assessment, the organisation may:

Any decision to refuse, restrict or withdraw approval must be confirmed in writing and must explain:

Ongoing declaration and review

Workers must notify the organisation promptly of any material change, including:

Approved arrangements will be reviewed at least annually and sooner where there is a change, concern, incident, pattern of sickness absence, deterioration in performance, working time risk or potential impact on people using the service.

A deliberate or unreasonable failure to declare relevant secondary employment or an outside interest may be addressed under the organisation’s disciplinary procedure. Action will not be automatic and will depend on the seriousness of the omission, the worker’s explanation, the risks created, any actual impact and whether the worker had a clear obligation to make the declaration.

5. Identifying and Managing Conflicts of Interest

Workers must act in the best interests of people using the service and must not allow personal, financial, business or professional interests to influence, or appear to influence, their judgement or conduct.

A worker must immediately declare any actual, potential or perceived conflict of interest. A declaration is required even where the worker believes that they can remain impartial.

Examples include:

The organisation will record the declaration, assess the level of risk and agree proportionate controls. Controls may include:

The assessment and agreed controls must be documented in a conflict management plan and reviewed at a frequency proportionate to the risk.

6. Private or Direct Work for People Using the Service

Workers must not, without prior written authorisation, enter into a private employment, self-employment, consultancy, financial or business arrangement with:

This restriction applies where the relationship or opportunity arose through the worker’s employment or engagement with {{org_field_name}}.

Requests will be considered individually. The organisation will assess:

Workers must never:

7. Working Time, Rest, Fatigue and Fitness to Work

{{org_field_name}} will take reasonable steps to protect workers from excessive working hours and fatigue and to ensure that secondary employment does not compromise safe care, attendance, performance or fitness to work.

Maximum weekly working time

Unless a lawful exception applies or the worker has signed a valid written opt-out, a worker’s working time must not exceed an average of 48 hours for each seven-day period, normally calculated over the applicable statutory reference period. Any opt-out relates only to the average 48-hour weekly limit. It does not remove the worker’s rights to daily rest, weekly rest, rest breaks, paid annual leave or applicable protections for night workers and young workers.

Workers must provide accurate information about hours worked for other employers or businesses where this is reasonably required to assess total working time, rest and fatigue risks.

Daily rest

Adult workers are ordinarily entitled to at least 11 consecutive hours’ rest in each 24-hour period. Where an exception or continuity-of-service provision applies, equivalent compensatory rest must be provided where required.

Weekly rest

Adult workers are ordinarily entitled to:

Rest breaks

Where an adult worker’s daily working time exceeds six hours, they are ordinarily entitled to an uninterrupted rest break of at least 20 minutes, subject to applicable exceptions and arrangements for compensatory rest.

Night work and safety-critical duties

Additional assessment will be undertaken where the worker:

Fatigue assessment

The organisation will consider the combined effect of:

Approval may be restricted, reviewed or withdrawn where there is evidence that the arrangement creates an unacceptable risk to the worker, colleagues or people using the service.

Workers must not report for duty where fatigue means that they cannot work safely. They must notify the appropriate manager immediately and follow the organisation’s sickness, absence or fitness-to-work procedure.

Young workers

Different and generally more protective working time limits apply to workers under the age of 18. Any proposed secondary employment involving a young worker must be referred to the registered manager or HR lead for a specific working time and risk assessment before approval.

8. Confidentiality, Data Protection and Professional Conduct

Secondary employment does not alter the worker’s continuing obligations concerning confidentiality, data protection, information security, professional boundaries and conduct.

Workers must not:

Workers must comply with:

These obligations continue after employment or engagement ends.

9. Safe Staffing, Availability and Continuity of Care

Workers must ensure that secondary employment does not:

Managers must consider patterns rather than isolated events. Concerns such as repeated lateness, sickness absence following outside work, fatigue, missed training, incomplete records, medication errors, reduced concentration or declined shifts should be reviewed to determine whether secondary employment is contributing to the risk.

Any action taken must be evidence-based, proportionate and documented.

10. Health, Fitness to Work and Reasonable Adjustments

Workers must inform the organisation where secondary employment has caused, or may reasonably cause, a change affecting their ability to perform their duties safely. They are not required to disclose unrelated medical information, but they must provide information necessary for the organisation to assess fitness, safety and reasonable adjustments.

Where a health or fatigue concern arises, {{org_field_name}} may:

Decisions must comply with the Equality Act 2010. A worker must not be treated unfavourably because of disability, pregnancy, maternity, religion, caring responsibilities or another protected characteristic. Reasonable adjustments will be considered where legally required.

11. Concerns, Breaches and Disciplinary Action

Potential breaches of this policy will be considered fairly and investigated in accordance with the organisation’s disciplinary procedure or relevant contractual process.

Examples of matters that may require investigation include:

The outcome will depend on the seriousness of the matter, the worker’s explanation, previous guidance, the level of risk, actual harm, intent and any mitigating circumstances. Outcomes may include:

No disciplinary sanction will be imposed solely because a worker has lawful secondary employment or exercises a statutory right concerning an unenforceable exclusivity term.

12. Worker Responsibilities

Workers are responsible for:

Workers remain personally responsible for ensuring that information provided about their outside work is accurate and current.

13. Organisational and Management Responsibilities

{{org_field_name}} will:

Line managers must:

The registered manager or designated senior manager must:

14. Records and Information Governance

The organisation will maintain a central secondary employment and conflicts-of-interest register. The register must include, where applicable:

Records must be:

Information will be collected and used only where necessary and proportionate for employment, contractual, health and safety, safeguarding, regulatory or legitimate governance purposes. Workers will be informed about how their information is used through the organisation’s workforce privacy notice.

15. Review and Appeal

A worker who disagrees with a decision may request a review in writing within 10 working days of receiving the decision.

The review should normally be undertaken by a manager who was not responsible for the original decision and who has appropriate authority.

The worker should identify:

The reviewing manager may uphold, vary or overturn the original decision. The outcome and reasons must be confirmed in writing.

Where the matter concerns an employment contract term, disciplinary sanction, discrimination concern or statutory right, the worker may also use the relevant grievance or appeal procedure.

16. Raising Concerns

Workers should raise concerns where they reasonably believe that:

Concerns may be raised with the line manager, registered manager, safeguarding lead, HR lead or through the organisation’s whistleblowing procedure.

No person will be subjected to retaliation or detrimental treatment for raising a genuine concern in good faith, even where the concern is not ultimately substantiated. Knowingly false or malicious allegations may be addressed under the appropriate procedure.

17. Monitoring, Audit and Policy Review

Compliance with this policy will be monitored through:

The organisation will look for patterns that may indicate unmanaged secondary employment or fatigue risks, including repeated lateness, declined shifts, short-notice absence, missed training, medication errors, incomplete records, reduced concentration or concerns about professional boundaries.

This policy will be formally reviewed at least annually and sooner where:

The policy review will be documented, including the evidence considered, changes made, approving person and implementation date.

18. Policy Statement

{{org_field_name}} recognises that workers may lawfully undertake secondary employment and hold outside interests. Such arrangements will be managed fairly, transparently and proportionately. The overriding priorities are the safety and rights of people using the service, adequate rest and fitness to work, professional integrity, confidentiality and the effective operation of the regulated service.

19. Related Policies and Procedures

This policy should be read alongside:

20. Legislation and Regulatory References

This policy has been developed with reference to:

References to legislation include subsequent amendments, replacement provisions and applicable statutory guidance.

Responsible Person: {{org_field_registered_manager_first_name}} {{org_field_registered_manager_last_name}}
Reviewed on: {{last_update_date}}
Next Review Date: {{next_review_date}}
Copyright © {{current_year}} – {{org_field_name}}. All rights reserved.

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