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{{org_field_name}}

Registration Number: {{org_field_registration_no}}

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Staff Dress Code and Uniform Policy

1. Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to establish safe, inclusive and proportionate standards of dress, uniform, workwear, footwear, personal presentation and personal protective equipment for all persons working at or on behalf of {{org_field_name}}. The policy is intended to protect the safety, dignity and well-being of individuals receiving care and support, reduce the risk of infection and cross-contamination, protect staff from workplace hazards, enable effective hand hygiene and provide clear identification of staff.

This policy supports compliance with the Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act 2016, the Regulated Services (Service Providers and Responsible Individuals) (Wales) Regulations 2017, as amended, and the associated Welsh Government statutory guidance. In particular, it supports compliance with requirements relating to care provided with sufficient care, competence and skill; current and effective policies and procedures; respect and sensitivity; suitably trained and competent staff; information for staff; hygiene and infection control; staff discipline; and oversight by the Responsible Individual.

The service will apply this policy in accordance with the Equality Act 2010, health and safety legislation and current infection-prevention and control guidance. Dress requirements will be based on the duties being performed and the risks presented, rather than personal preference, assumptions about appearance or unlawful discrimination.

2. Scope

This policy applies to all employees, workers, agency staff, bank staff, volunteers, students, apprentices, temporary staff, managers, nurses, ancillary staff, administrative staff and contractors working at or on behalf of {{org_field_name}}. Visiting health and social care professionals are expected to comply with their employer’s dress and infection-control requirements and with any reasonable local safety or infection-control arrangements communicated by the service while they are on the premises.

It covers:

• Uniform requirements and appropriate attire.
• Personal grooming and hygiene expectations.
• Use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and infection control measures.
• Guidelines on jewellery, footwear, and accessories.
• Cultural and religious dress considerations.
• Enforcement and non-compliance procedures.

The policy applies during:

• direct care and support;
• medicines administration;
• food preparation, handling or assistance with eating and drinking;
• cleaning, laundry, waste handling and maintenance duties;
• activities and community visits undertaken as part of the person’s work;
• training, meetings or other duties for which the person represents the service;
• outbreaks or periods when additional infection-control precautions are required.

Uniform and ordinary workwear are not automatically personal protective equipment. PPE is equipment or clothing selected following an assessment of a workplace risk and provided to protect the wearer or another person from that risk. Requirements relating to PPE are addressed separately in section 5.

3. Roles and Responsibilities

The service provider will:

• provide sufficient suitable uniforms, protective clothing and PPE for the work undertaken;
• ensure that PPE identified as necessary by risk assessment is supplied without charge;
• provide suitable sizes and designs, taking account of fit, compatibility, disability, pregnancy, religious observance and individual safety;
• provide appropriate changing, storage and laundry arrangements, or written home-laundering instructions where staff are authorised to launder uniforms themselves;
• ensure that staff receive induction, instruction, training and competency assessment relevant to their duties;
• maintain arrangements for replacing worn, damaged, contaminated or unsuitable uniform and PPE.

The Registered Manager will:

• implement this policy and ensure that staff understand its requirements;
• ensure dress and PPE requirements are proportionate to the duties and risks involved;
• consider and document requests for reasonable adjustments;
• ensure that non-compliance is addressed fairly, consistently and without discrimination;
• monitor compliance through observation, supervision, competency assessment, infection-control audit and incident review;
• escalate significant or repeated concerns to the Responsible Individual.

The Responsible Individual will:

• maintain oversight of the effectiveness and implementation of this policy;
• ensure that it is reviewed following legislative, regulatory or national guidance changes;
• consider relevant findings from audits, incidents, complaints, staff feedback and CIW inspections as part of quality assurance.

All persons covered by this policy must:

• attend work in clean, safe and suitable uniform or workwear;
• follow infection-prevention, hand-hygiene and PPE requirements;
• report any contaminated, damaged, poorly fitting or insufficient uniform or PPE promptly;
• request advice where a health condition, disability, pregnancy, religious requirement or other protected characteristic affects compliance;
• not make unauthorised alterations to uniforms or PPE;
• raise concerns where dress, uniform or PPE arrangements may place any person at risk.

4. Uniform Requirements and Appropriate Attire

To promote a professional and identifiable workforce, all staff must:

• Wear the uniform designated for their role unless a documented alternative or reasonable adjustment has been agreed. Uniforms must fit properly, permit safe movement and manual handling, and must not restrict the safe performance of duties.
• Begin each shift or working day in a clean uniform or clean workwear. Clothing must be changed without delay where it becomes visibly soiled, contaminated with blood or body fluids, or otherwise unsuitable for safe care. The service will ensure that replacement clothing is reasonably accessible during the shift.
• Wear the identification issued or approved by the service so that it is clearly visible when appropriate. Identification must state sufficient information to allow individuals and visitors to understand the person’s name and role. Badges, clips or lanyards must be positioned and secured so that they do not interfere with direct care, hand hygiene, moving and handling, food preparation or personal safety. Breakaway lanyards must be used where lanyards are permitted. A role-specific risk assessment may require identification to be removed, covered or worn differently during particular activities.
• Where a uniform is not required, wear clothing that is clean, practical, non-restrictive and suitable for the person’s role. Clothing must allow duties to be carried out safely, protect privacy and dignity, and allow effective hand hygiene where direct care is provided.

Clothing must not:

• contain wording, images or symbols that are discriminatory, sexually explicit, intimidating, politically campaigning, offensive or inconsistent with the rights and dignity of individuals;
• be excessively loose, trailing or likely to become caught in equipment;
• expose the wearer or an individual receiving care to avoidable injury or loss of dignity;
• prevent effective hand hygiene or the correct use of PPE;
• be visibly dirty, damaged or unsuitable for the task.

Particular types of clothing, including jeans, leggings, trainers or hooded garments, will not be prohibited solely because of their name or style. Their suitability will be determined by the role, appearance, fabric, condition, infection-control requirements and the findings of relevant risk assessments.

Uniform provision, storage and changing

The service will issue sufficient uniforms to enable staff to wear a clean uniform for each shift and to have access to a change of uniform where contamination may occur. Staff must not share uniforms.

Clean and used uniforms must be stored separately. Used or contaminated clothing must not be placed on communal surfaces, taken into food preparation areas or stored with clean clothing.

Staff must change out of contaminated uniform as soon as practicable. Where changing facilities are available, staff should use them. Where uniforms are worn while travelling to or from work, they must be covered by a clean outer garment where reasonably practicable and must not be worn for shopping, socialising or unrelated activities.

Uniform must not be worn by another person or used for non-work purposes. Staff must take reasonable steps to prevent unauthorised persons from obtaining or misusing clothing or identification bearing the service’s name or logo.

Any deliberate alteration, unauthorised branding or decoration of a uniform is prohibited unless approved as a reasonable adjustment.

5. Personal Grooming and Hygiene Expectations

Staff must maintain standards of personal hygiene and grooming that support safe care, effective infection prevention, the dignity of individuals and the safe performance of their duties. Requirements must be applied respectfully and must not be based on personal judgements about attractiveness, gender expression, age, culture or body shape.

Staff must attend work with appropriate personal cleanliness and in a condition that does not create an avoidable infection, health, safety or dignity concern. Staff should use deodorant or an appropriate alternative where necessary, while recognising that some individuals may be unable to use particular products for medical, dermatological, allergy, cultural or religious reasons.

Hair must be clean and controlled so that it does not come into contact with an individual, food, medicines, equipment, wounds or contaminated surfaces. Hair that may fall forward during direct care, food handling, cleaning or medicines duties must be tied or secured away from the face and shoulders. Hair coverings used for cultural or religious reasons must be clean, securely fitted and managed in accordance with the risk presented by the task.

Beards and facial hair must be kept clean. Where respiratory protective equipment requires a seal to the face, facial hair must not interfere with that seal. A suitable alternative form of respiratory protection must be considered where a tight-fitting respirator cannot achieve an adequate seal.

Fingernails must be clean, short and sufficiently smooth to avoid injury, glove damage and interference with effective hand hygiene. Staff carrying out direct care, clinical tasks, medicines duties, food handling or cleaning must not wear:

• false, acrylic, gel or extension nails;
• nail jewellery;
• chipped nail varnish; or
• nail varnish where this is prohibited by the service’s infection-control risk assessment.

Staff must not wear artificial nails when providing direct care.

Perfume, aftershave and other fragranced products must be used sparingly. Staff must not wear a fragrance where an individual’s assessed allergy, respiratory condition, sensory need, nausea, migraine or personal plan indicates that it may cause discomfort or harm.

Bare below the elbows for direct care

When providing direct personal care, wound care, medicines-related clinical activity, food handling, cleaning or any other task requiring effective hand and forearm hygiene, staff must:

• wear short sleeves or securely roll sleeves above the elbow;
• keep wrists and forearms free from wrist watches, bracelets and unsecured clothing;
• ensure that sleeves do not become contaminated or interfere with hand hygiene;
• put sleeves back in place after the task where required for warmth, dignity, cultural or religious reasons.

Any alternative required because of disability, health, religious observance or another protected characteristic must be considered individually and managed through a documented risk assessment and reasonable-adjustment process.

6. Personal Protective Equipment and Infection Prevention and Control

PPE must be selected and used according to the task, the individual’s presentation, the anticipated exposure and the service’s infection-control risk assessment. PPE must not be worn routinely where it is not required, and the same PPE must not be worn between individuals or between incompatible tasks.

Standard infection-control precautions must be applied to every individual, with additional transmission-based precautions used where an infection is suspected or confirmed, or where directed by Public Health Wales, the local Community Infection Prevention and Control Team, the Regional Health Protection Team or another competent health professional.

Staff must:

• perform hand hygiene at the required moments, including before putting on PPE and after removing it;
• assess the anticipated exposure before choosing PPE;
• wear disposable gloves where contact with blood, body fluids, mucous membranes, non-intact skin, contaminated equipment or specified infectious material is anticipated;
• wear a disposable apron or other suitable protective clothing where workwear may be contaminated;
• wear eye or face protection where splashing or spraying to the eyes, nose or mouth is reasonably anticipated;
• wear a fluid-resistant surgical mask or respiratory protective equipment only where indicated by current guidance, risk assessment or transmission-based precautions;
• put on and remove PPE in the correct order and avoid contaminating clothing, skin or the surrounding environment;
• change gloves and aprons between individuals and between dirty and clean tasks on the same individual;
• never wash, disinfect or reuse single-use PPE;
• dispose of used PPE in the correct waste stream;
• report insufficient supplies, damaged PPE, adverse skin reactions, poor fit or any failure of PPE immediately.

Gloves do not replace hand hygiene. Gloves must not be worn unnecessarily, carried in pockets for later use or used to touch clean communal items such as door handles, pens, telephones, medicines trolleys or care records after a contaminated task.

Masks must not be described as routinely required for all personal care, cleaning or food handling. Their use must reflect the current risk, the task and national or local infection-control advice.

Where tight-fitting respiratory protective equipment is required, staff must:

• use only the make, model and size for which they have passed face-fit testing;
• complete a fit check each time it is worn;
• be clean-shaven in the area of the face seal or use suitable alternative respiratory protection;
• receive appropriate training and competency assessment;
• report any inability to obtain an effective seal.

PPE identified as necessary by risk assessment will be provided by the employer without charge. PPE will be suitable for the wearer, available in appropriate sizes, compatible with other PPE, maintained or replaced as required and stored safely.

7. Uniform Laundering and Management of Contaminated Clothing

Uniforms and workwear must be laundered after each shift or sooner where visibly soiled or contaminated.

Where uniforms are laundered by the service:

• clean and used items must be stored and transported separately;
• laundry processes must follow the service’s infection-control and laundry procedures;
• staff must not take service-laundered items home unless authorised.

Where staff are authorised to launder uniforms at home:

• the service must provide written laundering instructions;
• the uniform must be transported in a closed, washable or disposable bag;
• the uniform must be removed from the bag without unnecessary handling;
• it must be washed separately from heavily soiled household items;
• the hottest temperature suitable for the fabric and consistent with the service’s laundering instructions must be used;
• it must be dried thoroughly before reuse;
• clean uniforms must be stored in a clean, dry area away from used clothing;
• staff must perform hand hygiene after handling used uniforms.

Clothing heavily contaminated with blood, body fluids, faeces, vomit or known infectious material must be managed in accordance with the service’s infected-linen procedure. Staff must seek managerial or infection-control advice rather than taking heavily contaminated clothing home without authorisation.

Uniforms that cannot withstand the required laundering process must be withdrawn and replaced.

8. Guidelines on Jewellery, Footwear, and Accessories

For safety and infection control reasons, the following rules apply:

Hand and wrist jewellery: Staff providing direct care, handling food, undertaking cleaning or performing clinical tasks must not wear wrist watches, bracelets or hand jewellery, except that one plain, smooth band or a religious kara may be permitted following infection-control and safety assessment. Rings with stones, raised settings or damaged surfaces must not be worn during direct care.

Earrings and piercings: A single pair of small, secure stud earrings may be worn unless a role-specific risk assessment prohibits them. Hoops, dangling earrings and unsecured facial or body jewellery must not be worn where they could be pulled, caught, contaminate a care task or cause injury. A new piercing that cannot temporarily be removed must be discussed with the Registered Manager and managed through an individual risk assessment.

Necklaces: Necklaces must not be exposed during direct care where they could be pulled, caught or contact an individual or care environment. A religious or medical necklace may be worn underneath clothing where this is safe.

Restrictions will be applied according to the work activity and risk. They will not be applied more widely than is reasonably necessary.

Footwear must be appropriate to the person’s role and the risks involved. Staff undertaking direct care, moving and handling, cleaning, food service or other physical duties must wear footwear that is:

• secure and well fitting;
• enclosed at the toe and, where the risk assessment requires it, enclosed at the heel;
• low heeled;
• stable and supportive;
• in good repair;
• made from material that can be cleaned appropriately;
• fitted with a sole suitable for the floor surfaces and slip risks encountered.

Open-toed sandals, backless footwear, slippers and high or unstable heels must not be worn for direct care or physical duties. Trainers may be worn where they meet all safety, cleaning and professional appearance requirements. Specialist or orthopaedic footwear may be worn as a reasonable adjustment following individual assessment.

Scarves, ties, lanyards, religious garments, identification cords and other accessories must be secured so that they do not trail, become caught, contact an individual or contaminate equipment or surfaces. Lanyards used in care areas must have a breakaway fastening and must not be permitted where a clip badge or another safer method is reasonably available.

Personal mobile telephones, earphones and smart watches must not be used during direct care unless authorised for a work-related or reasonable-adjustment purpose. Any authorised device must be kept clean and managed in accordance with infection-control, confidentiality and information-governance requirements.

9. Equality, Cultural and Religious Dress, Pregnancy and Reasonable Adjustments

{{org_field_name}} respects diversity and will apply this policy consistently and in accordance with the Equality Act 2010. No person will be treated less favourably because of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.

Staff may request a reasonable or proportionate variation to dress or uniform requirements because of disability, a health condition, pregnancy, maternity, religion, belief, cultural identity, menopause-related needs or another relevant circumstance.

Requests must be considered individually and in consultation with the staff member. The Registered Manager must:

• establish the specific requirement and the duties affected;
• consider infection-control, moving and handling, food safety, security and other relevant risks;
• avoid assumptions or stereotypes;
• consider alternative uniforms, fabrics, fastenings, sleeve arrangements, footwear, head coverings, PPE and working methods;
• obtain occupational health, infection-control, human resources or other competent advice where necessary;
• document the agreed adjustment and any review date;
• maintain confidentiality about medical or personal information.

Religious head coverings, turbans, hijabs, kippahs and similar garments may be worn. They must be clean and secured for the task being undertaken. During direct care, loose ends must be tucked away or secured. Where forearm exposure is necessary for effective hand hygiene, sleeves must be capable of being secured above the elbow for the task, or an agreed safe alternative must be used.

A requirement will only be restricted where this is a necessary and proportionate means of achieving a legitimate safety, infection-control, dignity or service-delivery objective and no less restrictive effective alternative is reasonably available.

Pregnant and disabled staff must have their individual uniform, footwear, PPE and workplace needs assessed. Suitable replacement or adapted clothing and equipment must be provided where reasonably required.

10. Skin Conditions, Illness and Contamination Incidents

Staff must report to their line manager any skin condition, open wound, weeping lesion, infection, allergy, dermatitis or other condition that may affect hand hygiene, PPE use or safe care. The service will respond confidentially and obtain occupational health or infection-control advice where necessary.

Cuts and abrasions on exposed skin must be covered with a suitable waterproof dressing. Staff must report damage to the skin caused or aggravated by hand hygiene products, gloves, uniform fabric or PPE.

Following a splash, needlestick, sharps injury or other exposure to blood or body fluids, staff must:

• make the area safe and carry out immediate first aid;
• report the incident without delay;
• follow the service’s exposure or inoculation-injury procedure;
• obtain urgent occupational health or medical advice where indicated;
• complete the required incident record.

A staff member who develops symptoms of a potentially transmissible infection must report this promptly and follow the service’s sickness, outbreak and infection-control procedures. Decisions about attendance or return to work must be based on the infection, symptoms, duties and current public-health advice.

11. Concerns, Non-Compliance and Disciplinary Action

Dress or uniform concerns should normally be addressed promptly, privately, respectfully and proportionately.

Where a staff member attends work in unsuitable clothing or without required PPE, the person in charge must assess:

• whether there is an immediate risk to an individual or the staff member;
• whether suitable replacement clothing or PPE can be provided;
• whether duties can be temporarily adjusted;
• whether the concern may relate to disability, pregnancy, religion or belief, a medical need, financial hardship or another circumstance requiring support or reasonable adjustment.

Staff may be instructed not to undertake a task, or to change into suitable clothing, where continuing would create an avoidable risk. They must not be allowed to provide care without PPE that has been identified as necessary by risk assessment.

Minor or first-time concerns should normally be managed through explanation, instruction, support or supervision. Repeated, deliberate or serious failure to follow this policy may be managed under the disciplinary procedure.

Formal disciplinary action must only be considered after:

• the relevant requirement has been clearly communicated;
• suitable uniform or PPE has been made available where it is the employer’s responsibility to provide it;
• any reasonable-adjustment or equality issue has been considered;
• the facts and level of risk have been established;
• the staff member has been given an opportunity to explain.

Deliberate refusal to use required PPE, unsafe reuse of disposable PPE, falsification of fit-testing records, wearing contaminated workwear between individuals, or conduct that places individuals at significant risk may constitute serious misconduct, subject to a fair investigation.

Staff may raise a concern about uniform, PPE, infection-control practice or unfair application of the policy through their line manager, the Registered Manager, the grievance procedure or the whistleblowing procedure, as appropriate. No person will be victimised for raising a genuine safety concern.

12. Compliance and Monitoring

The Registered Manager is responsible for day-to-day implementation and monitoring. The Responsible Individual will maintain oversight through the service’s quality-assurance arrangements.

Monitoring will include, where relevant:

• observation of uniform, hand-hygiene and PPE practice;
• checks that sufficient uniform and PPE sizes are available;
• review of laundering arrangements;
• review of contamination incidents, occupational exposure incidents, outbreaks and skin reactions;
• confirmation that staff have completed relevant induction, training and competency assessment;
• face-fit-testing records where tight-fitting respiratory protective equipment is used;
• review of reasonable adjustments and role-specific dress risk assessments;
• feedback from individuals, representatives, staff and visiting professionals;
• review of concerns, complaints, accidents, near misses and disciplinary themes.

Monitoring must focus on safety and implementation rather than personal opinions about style or appearance. Checks must be undertaken respectfully and must not involve discriminatory or humiliating comments.

Findings must be documented where action is required. The Registered Manager must identify the person responsible, completion date and follow-up arrangements. Significant, repeated or systemic concerns must be reported to the Responsible Individual and considered as part of the service’s quality-of-care review.

Staff understanding of this policy must be covered during induction and revisited through supervision, team meetings, refresher training and competency assessment. Agency, temporary and bank staff must receive relevant information before or at the beginning of their first shift.

13. Training and Competency

Staff must receive instruction appropriate to their role in:

• this policy and the reasons for its requirements;
• hand hygiene;
• standard infection-control precautions;
• selection, putting on, removal and disposal of PPE;
• prevention of contamination between individuals and tasks;
• management of uniform and contaminated clothing;
• respiratory and cough hygiene;
• outbreak or transmission-based precautions relevant to the service;
• reporting PPE defects, exposure incidents and skin conditions;
• equality, dignity and reasonable adjustments.

Staff who may be required to use specialist or respiratory protective equipment must receive additional training, fit testing and competency assessment.

Attendance alone does not demonstrate competency. Managers must take reasonable steps to observe practice and address unsafe technique through instruction, supervision, reassessment or formal action where necessary.

Training and competency records must be retained in accordance with the service’s record-retention arrangements.

14. Related Policies

This policy should be read alongside:

• CHW11 – Safe Care and Treatment Policy.
• CHW16 – Health and Safety at Work Policy.
• CHW17 – Infection Prevention and Control Policy.
• CHW30 – Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Policy.
• CHW42 – Communication and Engagement with Service Users and Families Policy.

• Staff Recruitment, Induction, Supervision and Development Policy.
• Staff Discipline and Grievance Policy.
• Personal Protective Equipment Procedure.
• Hand Hygiene Procedure.
• Laundry and Linen Management Policy.
• Waste and Sharps Management Policy.
• Outbreak and Communicable Disease Management Policy.
• Respiratory Infection Management Procedure.
• Occupational Exposure and Needlestick Injury Procedure.
• Moving and Handling Policy.
• Food Safety Policy.
• Sickness Absence and Fitness for Work Policy.
• Whistleblowing Policy.
• Incident Reporting and Duty of Candour Policy.
• Risk Assessment Policy.
• Data Protection, Confidentiality and Use of Mobile Devices Policy.

15. Relevant legislation and guidance

• Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act 2016.
• Regulated Services (Service Providers and Responsible Individuals) (Wales) Regulations 2017, as amended.
• Welsh Government statutory guidance for service providers and Responsible Individuals, Version 3, March 2024.
• CIW inspection framework for care home services and other regulated services.
• Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014.
• Equality Act 2010.
• Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
• Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.
• Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002, as amended.
• Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992, as amended in 2022.
• Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013.
• Current Public Health Wales infection-prevention and control resources for care homes.
• Current Welsh Government guidance on managing acute respiratory infections in social care.
• All Wales NHS Dress Code, used as a relevant good-practice reference where appropriate to direct-care activity.

16. Records

The service will maintain, as applicable:

• records of uniforms and specialist clothing issued;
• PPE training and competency records;
• respiratory-protective-equipment fit-testing records;
• documented reasonable adjustments and review dates;
• role-specific dress or footwear risk assessments;
• uniform and PPE stock checks;
• infection-control and dress-code audits;
• reports of uniform contamination, PPE failure, skin reactions and occupational exposure;
• records of advice, instruction, supervision or disciplinary action relating to significant non-compliance;
• policy approval and version-control records.

Records containing health, religion, disability or other personal information must be handled confidentially and only accessed by persons who need the information for a legitimate purpose.

17. Policy Review

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

• legislation, regulations, statutory guidance or CIW requirements change;
• Public Health Wales or Welsh Government issues new or amended infection-control guidance;
• the service changes its statement of purpose, staffing arrangements, uniform design, laundry arrangements or the people it supports;
• an outbreak, contamination event, occupational exposure, accident, near miss or safeguarding concern identifies a weakness;
• audit, inspection, complaint, staff feedback or individual feedback indicates that the policy is ineffective, unclear or being applied unfairly;
• new PPE or work equipment is introduced;
• an equality impact or reasonable-adjustment issue identifies a need for amendment.

The Registered Manager will coordinate the review. The Responsible Individual will ensure suitable oversight of the review and implementation arrangements. Relevant staff and, where appropriate, individuals receiving care and support or their representatives will be given an opportunity to contribute.

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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}}
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