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Registration Number: {{org_field_registration_no}}


Best Practice in Intimate Personal Care Policy

1. Purpose and Commitment

The purpose of this policy is to outline how {{org_field_name}} ensures the safe, respectful, and compassionate delivery of intimate personal care. Intimate personal care includes any activity involving personal hygiene, toileting, dressing, or any physical support that involves close personal contact. Our commitment is to protect the dignity, privacy, and rights of service users while delivering high-quality care that meets their individual needs.

We are committed to ensuring that all staff follow best practices in intimate care, promoting a person-centred approach while safeguarding both service users and care workers. This policy aligns with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) standards, the Mental Capacity Act 2005, and the Equality Act 2010. Our aim is to create a supportive environment where service users feel respected, valued, and empowered throughout the care process.

2. Scope

This policy applies to all employees, including care staff, administrative staff, volunteers, and contractors involved in the provision of intimate personal care. It covers:

The policy applies to all domiciliary care settings where intimate care is provided to service users of any age, gender, or cultural background. It ensures that care is delivered in accordance with individual preferences and needs while safeguarding service users’ rights and promoting independence.

3. Policy Statement

{{org_field_name}} is committed to delivering intimate personal care that is:

We aim to empower service users, promote independence, and ensure that care delivery respects their rights, choices, and cultural beliefs. Our approach ensures that all care is delivered with sensitivity and professionalism, maintaining service users’ physical and emotional well-being.

4. Principles of Best Practice in Intimate Personal Care

4.1 Dignity and Respect

We uphold the dignity and respect of service users by:

4.2 Person-Centred Approach

Care plans are tailored to individual needs, preferences, and cultural beliefs. This includes:

4.3 Privacy and Confidentiality

We protect service users’ privacy by:

5. Roles and Responsibilities

5.1 Care Staff Responsibilities

Care staff must:

5.2 Manager Responsibilities

Managers are responsible for:

5.3 Service User and Family Involvement

Service users will be supported to communicate their needs, wishes, preferences and concerns and to participate as fully as possible in assessment, care planning and decisions concerning intimate personal care.

Family members, friends, advocates and representatives may be involved where the service user consents to their involvement or where there is another lawful basis for that involvement. A family relationship alone does not give a person authority to consent to, refuse or make decisions about the service user’s care.

Where the service user lacks capacity to make a particular decision, involvement of family members and others must take place in accordance with the Mental Capacity Act 2005. Staff must establish whether any person holds relevant legal authority, such as a valid and applicable health and welfare Lasting Power of Attorney or appointment by the Court of Protection. Where no authorised decision-maker exists, decisions must be made in accordance with the Mental Capacity Act 2005 best-interests requirements.

Information about the service user’s care must only be shared with relatives or other persons where the service user has consented, the recipient has lawful authority, or another lawful basis permits or requires the disclosure.

6. Planning and Delivery of Intimate Personal Care

6.1 Care Planning

Individualised care and support plans for intimate personal care must be based on:

Care plans and risk assessments must be kept under review and updated when the service user’s needs, preferences, circumstances or risks change. Changes identified during care visits must be reported and recorded promptly so that care arrangements can be reassessed where necessary.

6.2 Consent, Mental Capacity and Communication

Intimate personal care must only be provided with the consent of the relevant person or where there is another lawful basis for providing the care.

Staff must:

Where there is reason to doubt a person’s capacity to make a particular decision about intimate personal care, the Mental Capacity Act 2005 must be followed. Capacity must be considered in relation to the specific decision at the time that decision needs to be made.

Where the service user is assessed as lacking capacity for the specific decision:

A best-interests decision must not be treated as permanent. Capacity, consent and the person’s wishes must be reconsidered when circumstances change or when a new decision is required.

6.3 Safe Care Delivery

Intimate personal care must be provided in a safe manner that minimises avoidable harm while protecting dignity, privacy and independence.

Staff must:

Where intimate care involves a healthcare or clinically related task, including catheter care, stoma care or another delegated healthcare intervention, staff must only perform the task where:

Staff must not improvise, undertake unfamiliar procedures or continue a task that is outside their competence.

7. Safeguarding and Risk Management

7.1 Preventing Abuse and Improper Treatment

{{org_field_name}} must protect service users from abuse and improper treatment during intimate personal care.

The organisation will maintain effective systems and processes to prevent abuse and reduce safeguarding risks. Staff must understand that intimate personal care can create particular vulnerability because it may involve nudity, touching of intimate areas, toileting, continence care and other close physical contact.

Staff must:

Abuse includes, but is not limited to, physical abuse, sexual abuse, psychological or emotional abuse, financial or material abuse, discriminatory abuse, neglect and acts of omission, organisational abuse, domestic abuse and other forms recognised under applicable safeguarding arrangements.

7.2 Recognising and Responding to Abuse

Staff must take all concerns, disclosures, allegations or evidence of abuse or improper treatment seriously.

Possible indicators may include:

Where abuse is suspected, disclosed, witnessed or alleged, staff must:

Care must not be provided in a manner that is degrading or discriminatory.

Control or restraint must not be used merely to make it easier to complete intimate personal care. Any control or restraint must have a lawful basis and must be necessary and proportionate to the risk of harm it is intended to prevent. Where the Mental Capacity Act 2005 applies, staff must act in accordance with its requirements, including the best-interests and least-restrictive principles.

7.3 Safeguarding Referrals, Investigation and Notifications

{{org_field_name}} will maintain and operate effective processes for responding to safeguarding concerns and allegations.

When the organisation becomes aware of an allegation or evidence of abuse or improper treatment connected with the regulated service, management must ensure that:

Where an incident of abuse or an allegation of abuse in relation to a service user is notifiable under the Care Quality Commission (Registration) Regulations 2009, the registered person must ensure that the Care Quality Commission is notified without delay using the required notification process.

Staff must not assume that reporting a safeguarding matter internally removes the requirement for external referral or statutory notification.

8. Cultural Sensitivity and Inclusivity

8.1 Respecting Diversity

We respect cultural, religious, and personal preferences by:

8.2 Gender Preferences

Whenever possible, we match care workers to service users’ gender preferences to promote comfort and dignity. This includes discussing preferences during care planning and ensuring continuity of care with familiar staff members.

9. Staff Training and Competency

9.1 Training Requirements

{{org_field_name}} must ensure that staff receive the training, support, supervision and professional development necessary to enable them to perform their duties safely and competently.

Staff who provide intimate personal care must receive training appropriate to their roles and the care they provide. This must include, where relevant:

Where staff undertake specific procedures such as catheter care, stoma care or other delegated healthcare tasks, they must receive task-specific training, supervision and competency assessment before undertaking those tasks without direct supervision.

In accordance with the statutory learning disability and autism training requirement applicable to CQC-registered providers, {{org_field_name}} must ensure that each person working for the purposes of its regulated activities receives training on learning disability and autism that is appropriate to that person’s role.

Learning disability and autism training must comply with the applicable statutory requirements and Code of Practice and must be provided at a level appropriate to the person’s role and responsibilities.

Training requirements apply not only to staff providing direct intimate personal care but, in relation to mandatory learning disability and autism training, to persons working for the purposes of the organisation’s regulated activities as required by law.

Training must be refreshed or updated where required by legislation, recognised guidance, identified learning needs, changes in the person’s role, changes in the needs of service users or the outcome of supervision, audit or competency assessment.

9.2 Competency Assessments

Training alone does not demonstrate competence. Managers must ensure that staff are assessed as competent for the care and tasks they are expected to perform.

Competency assessment may include:

Competency assessments must be recorded.

Where a staff member has not demonstrated the competence required for a task, they must not undertake that task without appropriate supervision until further training, support and reassessment have established that they are competent.

Managers must provide ongoing supervision, support and opportunities for staff development and must take appropriate action where unsafe or inappropriate practice is identified.

10. Record-Keeping and Documentation

10.1 Care Records

{{org_field_name}} must maintain an accurate, complete, contemporaneous and secure record in respect of each service user, including the intimate personal care and support provided and relevant decisions concerning that care.

Staff must make records as soon as practicable following the care or event and must record information factually and clearly.

Records relating to intimate personal care must include, where relevant:

Records must not contain derogatory, judgemental, inappropriate or unnecessary intimate detail. Information recorded must be relevant to the person’s care, safety, wellbeing and the organisation’s legal responsibilities.

Staff must not falsify records, record care that has not been provided, retrospectively alter records in a misleading manner or sign records on behalf of another worker.

10.2 Secure Storage, Access and Confidentiality

Care records and other information concerning service users must be stored securely and protected against unauthorised access, loss, destruction, alteration or inappropriate disclosure.

Access must be restricted to persons who require the information for a legitimate purpose connected with the person’s care, safeguarding, management of the service or another lawful purpose.

Electronic records must be protected by appropriate access controls and security measures. Paper records must be stored securely when not in use.

Staff must maintain confidentiality when creating, accessing, discussing, transferring or disposing of records.

Information must only be shared where there is an appropriate lawful basis. Where safeguarding or another legal duty requires information to be disclosed, staff must follow the organisation’s information governance and safeguarding procedures.

Records must be retained and disposed of in accordance with applicable legal requirements and the organisation’s records management arrangements.

11. Communication and Collaboration

11.1 Internal Communication

Effective communication between staff is required to ensure continuity, safety and consistency of care.

This includes:

Confidential information must only be communicated to staff who need it for a legitimate care, safeguarding or management purpose.

11.2 Collaboration with Families, Representatives and Healthcare Professionals

{{org_field_name}} will work with relevant healthcare professionals and, where appropriate and lawful, family members, representatives and advocates to support safe and coordinated care.

Family members and other representatives will only receive information or participate in decisions where:

The organisation will liaise with relevant healthcare professionals where necessary to:

Information shared must be relevant, proportionate and handled in accordance with confidentiality and data protection requirements.

12. Complaints and Feedback

12.1 Reporting Concerns

Service users and families can report concerns through:

12.2 Feedback and Continuous Improvement

We welcome feedback to:

13. Quality Assurance and Continuous Improvement

13.1 Audits and Reviews

Regular audits ensure compliance with this policy. Audits include:

13.2 Continuous Improvement

We use audit results and feedback to:

14. Compliance and Review

14.1 Legal and Regulatory Compliance

This policy must be implemented in accordance with applicable legislation and regulatory requirements in England, including, where relevant:

Where {{org_field_name}} provides services to children or young people, applicable child safeguarding legislation and statutory guidance must also be followed.

This policy must be read alongside the organisation’s Safeguarding Policy, Mental Capacity and Consent Policy, Infection Prevention and Control Policy, Moving and Handling Policy, Medication Policy, Complaints Policy, Information Governance and Confidentiality Policy and any procedures governing delegated healthcare tasks.

Where there is any conflict between this policy and a legal or regulatory requirement, the applicable legal or regulatory requirement must take precedence and the policy must be reviewed without unnecessary delay.

14.2 Policy Review

This policy will be reviewed at planned intervals and sooner where required because of:

The registered manager or other designated responsible person must ensure that amendments are communicated to relevant staff and that any associated training, competency assessment or procedural changes are implemented.


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

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