Login

DCW119-Supporting Personal and Sexual Relationships Policy

{{org_field_logo}}

{{org_field_name}}

Registration Number: {{org_field_registration_no}}

Supporting Personal and Sexual Relationships Policy

1. Purpose

This policy sets out our approach to supporting service users in their right to personal and sexual relationships while receiving care and support. It ensures that our home care service upholds the dignity, autonomy, and human rights of individuals, recognising that all adults have the right to express their sexuality and form relationships, regardless of age, disability, or the need for care.

Our organisation is committed to promoting person-centred care, ensuring that service users are supported in ways that reflect their individual choices, needs, and preferences. We will provide staff with clear guidance on how to approach this sensitive area professionally, lawfully, and with respect for the rights and well-being of all involved.

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 Welsh Government statutory guidance for care home and domiciliary support services, Version 3, March 2024. It also reflects the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014, the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Code of Practice, the Human Rights Act 1998, the Equality Act 2010, the Sexual Offences Act 2003, the Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR, Wales Safeguarding Procedures, Social Care Wales Codes of Professional Practice, and CIW expectations for safe, person-centred, rights-based domiciliary support services.

2. Scope

This policy applies to all employees, volunteers, and contracted workers who provide domiciliary care services. It also applies to service users, their families, and external agencies involved in the provision of care.

Where the service provides care and support to a child or young person under the age of 18, this policy must be applied in line with the child’s age, understanding, legal status, care and support plan, parental responsibility arrangements, safeguarding duties and any local authority requirements. Nothing in this policy permits staff to support or facilitate sexual activity involving a child, sexual exploitation, abuse, coercion, grooming, or any unlawful activity. Any concern that a child or adult is at risk of abuse, neglect, exploitation or improper treatment must be managed immediately under the Safeguarding Adults from Abuse and Improper Treatment Policy, Safeguarding Children Policy where applicable, Wales Safeguarding Procedures and CIW notification requirements.

It covers:

3. Managing Personal and Sexual Relationships in Care

3.1 Recognising and Respecting Service Users’ Rights

Every individual receiving care has the right to privacy, dignity, and autonomy. This includes the right to:

Staff must take a rights-based, person-centred and outcome-focused approach. Support must promote the individual’s well-being, privacy, dignity, autonomy, independence, equality, communication needs, cultural identity, Welsh language needs where applicable, and personal outcomes. Staff must not make assumptions about a person’s relationships, sexuality, gender identity, capacity, disability, age, religion, culture or family circumstances. Any restriction on privacy, contact, relationships or personal expression must be lawful, necessary, proportionate, risk-assessed, recorded, and reviewed.

Staff must ensure that personal beliefs or discomfort do not interfere with supporting service users in exercising these rights. If a staff member feels unable to support a service user in this area, they must refer the matter to a senior manager rather than impose their personal views.

3.2 Supporting Safe and Consensual Relationships

Staff must take a positive approach to supporting relationships while ensuring that all interactions are consensual, safe, and do not cause harm. This includes:

If a service user wishes to form a relationship, staff should assess any support needs, such as communication barriers, mobility assistance, or ensuring privacy within their home.

3.3 What Staff May and Must Not Do

Staff may provide respectful, factual and non-judgemental support by listening to the individual, discussing relationship-related wishes as part of person-centred care, signposting to appropriate sexual health, counselling, advocacy, GP or specialist services, supporting access to accessible information, and recording relevant agreed support needs in the personal plan where this is appropriate and consented to.

Staff must not arrange sexual activity, introduce individuals for sexual purposes, participate in or observe sexual activity, purchase sexual services, pornography or sexual items for an individual, share sexually explicit material, provide sexual advice beyond factual signposting, keep secrets about safeguarding concerns, or act outside the individual’s personal plan, risk assessment, law, professional boundaries or organisational procedures.

Where an individual requests support that staff are not permitted to provide, staff must respond respectfully, explain the boundary, preserve the person’s dignity, and seek guidance from the Registered Manager or Safeguarding Lead.

3.4 Mental Capacity, Consent and Sexual Relationships

The organisation will apply the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Code of Practice when there is reason to believe that an individual may be unable to make a specific decision about a personal or sexual relationship because of an impairment of, or disturbance in the functioning of, the mind or brain. Capacity must be presumed unless there is evidence to the contrary, and individuals must be supported to make their own decisions before any conclusion is reached that they lack capacity.

Capacity is decision-specific and time-specific. Staff must not assume that a person lacks capacity because of age, disability, diagnosis, communication needs, previous decisions, lifestyle, sexual orientation, gender identity, or because others disagree with the person’s choices. A person is not to be treated as unable to make a decision merely because they make a decision that others consider unwise.

Where a capacity assessment is required in relation to sexual relations, the assessment must be undertaken by a suitably competent person and must consider whether the individual can understand, retain, use or weigh, and communicate the relevant information for the decision. Relevant information may include the nature and reasonably foreseeable consequences of the sexual act, the right to refuse, that consent can be withdrawn at any time, that the other person must have capacity to consent and must consent before and throughout the sexual activity, the risk of sexually transmitted infections, pregnancy where relevant, and how to seek help if they feel unsafe, pressured, harmed or exploited.

Staff must recognise that nobody can consent on behalf of another adult to sexual activity. A best interests decision under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 cannot be used to consent to sexual relations on behalf of a person who lacks capacity to consent to sexual relations. If an individual lacks capacity in relation to sexual relations, staff must seek immediate guidance from the Registered Manager, Safeguarding Lead, social worker, commissioner, legal adviser or other appropriate professional. The individual’s rights to affection, companionship, friendship, family life, privacy and non-sexual intimacy must still be considered and supported where lawful, safe and consistent with their well-being.

Consent must be free, informed, voluntary and ongoing. Staff must take immediate safeguarding action if there are concerns about coercion, grooming, pressure, intimidation, exploitation, domestic abuse, sexual abuse, financial abuse, modern slavery, forced marriage, trafficking, or any imbalance of power that may affect free consent.

3.5 Personal Plan, Provider Assessment and Positive Risk-Taking

The individual’s wishes, needs, risks and agreed support in relation to personal and sexual relationships must be considered, where relevant, as part of the provider assessment, personal plan and review process. This must be done sensitively, proportionately and only where it is relevant to the person’s care and support, personal outcomes, safety or well-being.

Any relationship-related support recorded in the personal plan must be co-produced with the individual wherever possible, and with their representative, commissioner, placing authority or relevant professional where appropriate and lawful. The plan must clearly state what support staff will provide, what staff must not do, any communication needs, privacy preferences, safeguarding measures, positive risk-taking arrangements, and when the matter must be escalated to the Registered Manager or Safeguarding Lead.

Risk assessments must balance the individual’s right to privacy, family life, autonomy and relationships with the duty to protect the individual and others from abuse, neglect, exploitation and improper treatment. Restrictions must only be used where lawful, necessary and proportionate, and must be reviewed regularly or sooner if circumstances change.

Where relationship-related needs or risks change, the provider assessment and personal plan must be reviewed and revised as necessary. Relevant changes must be recorded and shared only with those who need to know for the purpose of providing safe, lawful and person-centred care.

3.6 LGBTQ+ Inclusivity and Support

Our organisation is committed to ensuring that LGBTQ+ service users feel respected and supported. Staff must:

All service users, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation, have the right to be treated with equality and respect.

Staff must also have regard to all protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010, including age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation. Staff must support individuals in a way that is inclusive, culturally sensitive and free from discrimination, harassment or victimisation. Any discriminatory practice, language or behaviour by staff, other professionals, family members or others must be challenged and reported in line with the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Policy, Safeguarding Policy, Complaints Policy or Disciplinary Policy as appropriate.

3.7 Privacy, Confidentiality and Professional Boundaries

Staff must respect the individual’s privacy, dignity, confidentiality, autonomy and right to private and family life. Information about an individual’s relationships, sexuality, gender identity, sexual health or personal life must not be shared with family members, representatives, professionals or colleagues unless the individual has consented, the information is needed to provide safe and lawful care, or disclosure is required because of safeguarding, legal, regulatory or professional obligations.

Relationship-related information must only be recorded where it is relevant, necessary and proportionate. Records must be factual, respectful, non-judgemental, dated, and stored in accordance with the Confidentiality and Data Protection Policy, Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR.

Staff must maintain professional boundaries at all times. Staff must not enter into personal, romantic, sexual, exploitative or financially inappropriate relationships with individuals receiving care and support. Staff must not use their position to influence, pressure, shame, ridicule, control or restrict an individual’s lawful relationship choices.

If staff encounter an intimate or private situation during a care visit, they must preserve the individual’s dignity, withdraw where safe and appropriate, and seek guidance if there are any concerns about consent, capacity, coercion, exploitation, abuse, risk to others, or professional boundaries.

Where a situation is complex or raises ethical, safeguarding, legal or care-planning concerns, staff must seek guidance from the Registered Manager, Safeguarding Lead or Responsible Individual as appropriate.

4. Safeguarding and Risk Management

4.1 Identifying, Preventing and Responding to Abuse

Staff must be vigilant in recognising signs of abuse, neglect, exploitation, coercion or improper treatment within personal or sexual relationships. This may include sexual abuse, domestic abuse, coercive or controlling behaviour, grooming, forced marriage, honour-based abuse, trafficking, modern slavery, financial abuse, discriminatory abuse, online abuse, image-based abuse, harassment, stalking, or pressure from family members, partners, peers, professionals or others.

Where there is any allegation, suspicion or evidence of abuse, neglect, exploitation or improper treatment, staff must take immediate action to promote the safety and well-being of the individual and any other person at risk. Staff must report the concern without delay to the Safeguarding Lead, Registered Manager or on-call manager, and the organisation must make referrals to the local authority safeguarding team, police, health professionals, commissioner, CIW or other relevant body as required.

Staff must not investigate safeguarding concerns themselves beyond taking immediate steps to preserve safety, record factual information and report the concern. Staff must not promise secrecy. The individual must be listened to, believed, supported to understand their options, and offered advocacy or other appropriate support.

Any concern regarding forced marriage, sexual exploitation, domestic abuse, financial exploitation, modern slavery, trafficking, abuse by a person in a position of trust, or a criminal offence must be handled in accordance with the Safeguarding Adults from Abuse and Improper Treatment Policy, Safeguarding Children Policy where applicable, Wales Safeguarding Procedures, local safeguarding arrangements and CIW notification requirements.

4.2 CIW Notifications, Safeguarding Referrals and Escalation

The Registered Manager, Responsible Individual or delegated authorised person must ensure that CIW is notified in accordance with the Regulated Services (Service Providers and Responsible Individuals) (Wales) Regulations 2017, as amended, and CIW Online requirements. This includes, but is not limited to, any abuse or allegation of abuse involving the service provider, a member of staff or volunteer; any allegation of misconduct by a member of staff; any incident reported to the police; any serious accident or injury; and any event that prevents, or could prevent, the service from being provided safely.

Notifications must be made without delay and in writing, unless the Regulations specify otherwise, and must be submitted in the manner required by CIW. Records must show the concern, immediate action taken, referrals made, notifications completed, advice received, outcome, learning and any changes made to the individual’s personal plan, risk assessment or service procedure.

Where the concern involves a child or young person, the organisation must also consider any additional notification requirements relating to children, including suspected child sexual exploitation or child criminal exploitation, and must follow local child safeguarding procedures immediately.

4.3 Supporting Service Users with Disabilities

Individuals with physical disabilities, learning disabilities, or neurodiversity may require additional support in forming and maintaining relationships. Staff should:

Information and support about relationships, consent, sexual health, safeguarding and complaints must be provided in a way the individual can understand. This may include easy read information, pictures, communication aids, interpreters, British Sign Language, Welsh language support, advocacy, additional time, involvement of appropriate professionals, or specialist support for people with learning disabilities, autism, dementia, acquired brain injury, sensory impairment, mental health needs or other communication needs.

4.4 Advocacy, Complaints and Concerns

Individuals must be supported to raise concerns or complaints about how their relationships, sexuality, privacy, dignity, consent, equality or safeguarding concerns are being handled. Information about how to complain must be accessible and explained in a way the individual can understand.

Individuals must be informed about the availability of advocacy services where they need support to understand information, express their wishes, make decisions, raise a concern, make a complaint or participate in safeguarding processes. Where appropriate, staff must signpost to independent advocacy, the local authority, commissioner, Public Services Ombudsman for Wales, Citizen Voice Body (Llais), CIW, Children’s Commissioner for Wales or Older People’s Commissioner for Wales.

No individual must be treated unfairly, have their care reduced, or experience victimisation because they have raised a concern, made a complaint, asked for privacy, disclosed abuse, challenged discrimination, or requested support in relation to a personal or sexual relationship.

4.5 Duty of Candour

The organisation will act in an open and transparent way with individuals and, where appropriate, their representatives when something goes wrong in relation to the support provided under this policy. This includes being honest about incidents, explaining what has happened where it is appropriate and lawful to do so, providing information about actions taken, offering an apology where appropriate, and identifying learning to reduce the risk of recurrence.

Staff must report incidents, errors, poor practice, discriminatory practice, breaches of confidentiality, safeguarding concerns or failures to follow this policy without delay. The Registered Manager and Responsible Individual will ensure that concerns are reviewed, recorded, acted upon and used to improve the quality and safety of the service.

5. Staff Training, Conduct and Responsibilities

All staff must receive induction, supervision, appraisal and training appropriate to their role so that they understand how to support personal and sexual relationships lawfully, safely, respectfully and in line with this policy. Training and supervision must cover, as relevant to the staff member’s role:

Safeguarding training must be consistent with the National Safeguarding Training, Learning and Development Standards for Wales and local safeguarding board requirements. Staff understanding must be reviewed through supervision, team meetings, spot checks, incident reviews and appraisal.

Staff must follow the Social Care Wales Codes of Professional Practice, this policy, the Safeguarding Policy, Confidentiality and Data Protection Policy, Whistleblowing Policy, Complaints Policy and Disciplinary and Grievance Policy. Failure to follow this policy, including failure to report safeguarding concerns, breach of professional boundaries, discriminatory conduct, inappropriate sexual behaviour, abuse, neglect or improper treatment, may result in disciplinary action, referral to Social Care Wales, referral to the Disclosure and Barring Service, referral to CIW, safeguarding referral and/or police referral as appropriate.

6. Records, Monitoring and Quality Assurance

The organisation will keep accurate, respectful and proportionate records relating to any support, assessment, concern, complaint, safeguarding referral, CIW notification, advice or decision made under this policy. Records must be factual, dated, signed or attributable to the staff member making the record, and stored securely.

Records may include, where relevant, the individual’s expressed wishes, communication needs, consent, capacity considerations, personal plan updates, provider assessment updates, risk assessment, safeguarding actions, referrals, professional advice, advocacy involvement, family or representative involvement, complaints, outcomes and learning.

The Registered Manager will monitor the implementation of this policy through care plan audits, safeguarding audits, complaints analysis, incident reviews, staff supervision, training records and feedback from individuals and representatives. Themes, learning and improvements will be reported through the service’s governance and quality assurance arrangements and, where relevant, included in quality of care review processes.

7. Related Policies

This policy should be read alongside:

8. Policy Review

This policy will be reviewed at least annually, or sooner where there are changes in legislation, Welsh Government statutory guidance, CIW requirements, Wales Safeguarding Procedures, Social Care Wales guidance, case law, safeguarding learning, complaints, incidents, inspection findings or organisational practice. The Registered Manager is responsible for ensuring day-to-day implementation of this policy. The Responsible Individual will maintain oversight of policy compliance through governance, quality assurance and regulatory monitoring arrangements.

9. CIW Inspection Ratings and Service Improvement

The organisation recognises that CIW inspection activity for domiciliary support services considers the quality and safety of care and support, including well-being, care and support, leadership and management, and, where applicable, environment. Practice under this policy must therefore be capable of demonstrating that individuals are supported safely, respectfully and in accordance with their rights, personal outcomes, personal plans, safeguarding needs and communication needs.

The Registered Manager and Responsible Individual will ensure that learning from incidents, safeguarding concerns, complaints, feedback, audits and inspection findings is used to improve practice under this policy. Where CIW issues an inspection rating or identifies an area for improvement linked to this policy, the organisation will take timely action and update practice, training, records or policy wording as required.

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.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *