{{org_field_logo}}

{{org_field_name}}

Registration Number: {{org_field_registration_no}}

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Falls Prevention and Management Policy

1. Purpose

The purpose of this Falls Prevention and Management Policy is to provide a structured, lawful, and best-practice framework for preventing, managing, and responding to falls affecting clients supported by temporary workers of {{org_field_name}}. Falls are a major cause of injury, hospitalisation, reduced independence, and in some cases, premature death, especially among older adults and people living in care homes or supported environments. This policy ensures that all temporary workers, including registered nurses and healthcare assistants, understand their responsibilities to reduce the risk of falls and respond appropriately when falls occur.

This policy supports compliance with the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992, the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 where applicable, the Mental Capacity Act 2005, the Care Act 2014, the Human Rights Act 1998, the Equality Act 2010, the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. It also reflects current national clinical guidance, including NICE guideline NG249, Falls: assessment and prevention in older people and in people 50 and over at higher risk.

{{org_field_name}} operates as an employment business supplying temporary workers to client organisations. It does not itself carry on or direct a regulated care activity. The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 and CQC Fundamental Standards therefore apply directly to a client organisation where that client is a registered provider. Temporary workers supplied by {{org_field_name}} must nevertheless work in a manner that supports the client organisation’s compliance with those requirements and must follow lawful client-specific policies, care plans, risk assessments and reporting procedures.

{{org_field_name}} is committed to supplying appropriately recruited, trained and competent temporary workers who contribute to safe, person-centred support. The agency will obtain sufficient information from client organisations about assignment risks, required competence, local falls procedures, emergency arrangements and reporting routes before placing a worker. The client organisation remains responsible for the person’s clinical assessment, care planning, premises, equipment and day-to-day direction and control of the work, unless a written agreement lawfully allocates a particular responsibility differently.

2. Scope

This policy applies to:

• All temporary workers employed by {{org_field_name}} under zero-hours or casual contracts, including registered nurses, healthcare assistants, and support staff
• All client settings where temporary workers are assigned, including nursing homes, care homes, and healthcare facilities
• All office staff responsible for overseeing placements, safeguarding, incident management, and training delivery

For the purposes of this policy:

• “Person” or “person receiving care or support” means the individual who may be at risk of falling.
• “Client organisation” means the care home, nursing home, hospital, supported-living provider or other organisation to which a temporary worker is assigned.
• “Temporary worker” includes agency workers, employees, casual workers and other individuals supplied by {{org_field_name}}, irrespective of the precise contractual label applied to them.

This policy does not authorise temporary workers to undertake clinical assessment, treatment, manual handling, use of equipment or other duties outside their training, competence, professional registration or assignment instructions.

Temporary workers must comply with this policy and with the client organisation’s lawful falls prevention, post-fall, emergency, moving and handling, safeguarding, record-keeping and incident-reporting procedures. Where there is any conflict, uncertainty or apparent unsafe instruction, the worker must protect the person from immediate harm, seek guidance from the client’s senior person on duty and promptly notify {{org_field_name}}. A worker must not follow an instruction that they reasonably believe would be unlawful, outside their competence or likely to expose any person to avoidable harm.

3. Related Policies

• Health and Safety Policy
• Safeguarding Adults and Children Policy
• Incident Reporting and Management Policy
• Infection Prevention and Control Policy
• Risk Assessment Policy
• Code of Conduct for Temporary Workers
• Moving and Handling Policy

• Mental Capacity, Consent and Best-Interests Policy
• Restraint and Restrictive Practice Policy
• Data Protection, Confidentiality and Records Management Policy
• Whistleblowing and Speaking Up Policy
• Emergency Response and First Aid Policy
• Duty of Candour and Incident Communication Policy, where applicable to work undertaken for registered providers
• Lone Working Policy, where workers may support people without immediate assistance
• Medication Management Policy
• Equipment Safety Policy

4. Definitions

Fall: An event that results in a person coming to rest inadvertently on the ground, floor or another lower level, whether or not an injury occurs. This includes an unwitnessed fall where the available information reasonably indicates that the person came to rest on a lower level unintentionally.

Near miss: An event in which a person loses balance, slips, trips or begins to fall but does not come to rest on the ground or a lower level, whether because the person recovers or receives assistance.

Multifactorial falls assessment: A comprehensive, individualised assessment undertaken by appropriately competent professionals, which may consider gait and balance, muscle strength, medicines, cardiovascular factors, cognition, continence, vision, hearing, footwear, feet, diet, hydration, osteoporosis risk, environmental hazards, functional ability and fear of falling.

Restrictive practice: Any measure that restricts a person’s freedom of movement, choice or access, including physical restraint, continuous supervision, locked doors, bedrails or equipment used primarily to prevent movement. Restrictive practices must never be introduced solely for staff convenience or as a routine response to falls risk.

Post-fall assessment: An assessment undertaken after a fall to identify injury, deterioration, the possible cause of the fall and any immediate or longer-term action required. It must be undertaken by a person with the competence and authority required by the client organisation’s procedure.

5. Legal, Regulatory and Best-Practice Framework

This policy is informed by the following legislation and guidance, as amended or replaced from time to time:

• Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974: general duties concerning the health, safety and welfare of workers and others affected by work activities.
• Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999: suitable and sufficient risk assessment, effective health and safety arrangements, emergency procedures, worker information, co-operation and co-ordination between employers, competence and training, and protection of temporary workers.
• Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992: avoidance of hazardous manual handling where reasonably practicable, assessment of unavoidable handling and reduction of risk. These Regulations do not create a blanket prohibition on assisting a person from the floor, but any assistance must follow an appropriate assessment, the person’s needs, available equipment and the worker’s competence.
• Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998: safe selection, maintenance and use of relevant work equipment.
• Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998: requirements relating to lifting equipment, including equipment used for lifting or transferring people, where applicable.
• Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013: reporting and recording of specified work-related deaths, injuries and dangerous occurrences by the legally responsible person.
• Mental Capacity Act 2005 and its Code of Practice: decision-specific capacity, support for decision-making, best-interests decision-making and limits on restraint.
• Care Act 2014: adult safeguarding duties and the prevention of abuse and neglect.
• Human Rights Act 1998: protection of dignity, private life, liberty and freedom from degrading treatment.
• Equality Act 2010: protection from discrimination and the duty to make reasonable adjustments where applicable.
• UK General Data Protection Regulation and Data Protection Act 2018: lawful, fair, secure and proportionate processing of health, incident and safeguarding information.
• Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014: relevant to client organisations that carry on regulated activities, including requirements concerning person-centred care, dignity and respect, consent, safe care and treatment, safeguarding, good governance, staffing and fit and proper staff.
• NICE guideline NG249, Falls: assessment and prevention in older people and in people 50 and over at higher risk, published on 29 April 2025.
• Relevant NICE quality standards, NHS patient-safety materials, HSE guidance, professional codes and the client organisation’s local clinical and operational procedures.

{{org_field_name}} is not a registered care provider merely because it supplies workers to registered organisations. CQC requirements are therefore included in this policy as standards that agency workers must support when working within a CQC-registered service, rather than as a statement that {{org_field_name}} itself carries on a regulated activity.

6. Allocation of Responsibilities Between the Agency and Client Organisation

Before a placement starts, {{org_field_name}} will take reasonably practicable steps to obtain from the client organisation:

• the nature of the work and the care setting;
• known health and safety risks associated with the assignment;
• measures in place to control those risks;
• the training, qualifications, experience and competence required;
• the client’s falls prevention and post-fall procedures;
• local emergency, escalation and incident-reporting arrangements;
• information about equipment the worker may be expected to use; and
• any occupational health or personal protective equipment requirements relevant to the assignment.

{{org_field_name}} will provide the temporary worker with sufficient assignment information and will not knowingly place a worker where the worker lacks a required qualification, competence or training.

The client organisation is normally responsible for:

• assessing the individual person’s clinical and environmental falls risks;
• preparing, reviewing and communicating care plans and risk assessments;
• maintaining safe premises and suitable equipment;
• providing local induction and information about emergency procedures;
• directing and supervising the worker during the assignment;
• ensuring access to timely clinical assessment and treatment;
• making any statutory notification for which it is the legally responsible person; and
• informing {{org_field_name}} about relevant incidents, restrictions or changes affecting the placement.

These responsibilities must be reflected in the contractual arrangements between {{org_field_name}} and the client organisation. Nothing in this section removes any non-delegable duty imposed by law on either party.

7. Principles of Falls Prevention

Temporary workers must:

• Recognise that falls prevention is everyone’s responsibility
• Promote safe environments that minimise fall risks
• Actively engage in falls risk management in partnership with client staff
• Report all falls, near misses, and hazards immediately
• Promote the dignity, independence, and wellbeing of clients, balancing safety with autonomy

Falls prevention must always be approached within the framework of person-centred care, supporting client choice while managing risks proportionately.

Falls prevention must not be reduced to preventing all movement or eliminating every possibility of a fall. Measures must be individualised, evidence-based and proportionate, and must balance safety with the person’s dignity, independence, rehabilitation goals, preferences and right to make decisions involving ordinary and reasonably understood risks.

A person must not be assumed to lack mental capacity merely because they make a decision that staff consider unwise. Where there is reason to doubt capacity in relation to a specific falls-related decision, the client organisation’s Mental Capacity Act procedure must be followed. Temporary workers must not make formal capacity determinations unless this falls within their role and competence.

Bedrails, sensor mats, low beds, continuous observation, locked areas, removal of mobility aids or other restrictive measures must not be used automatically. Any such measure must be authorised through the client organisation’s assessment and care-planning process, be necessary and proportionate, represent the least restrictive practicable option, and be reviewed at appropriate intervals.

8. Responsibilities of Temporary Workers

All temporary workers must:

• At the start of each assignment, and before providing relevant support where reasonably practicable, read and understand the person’s current falls risk information, mobility and moving-and-handling plan, relevant care plan, emergency instructions and required observation level. Any unavailable, unclear, contradictory or apparently outdated information must be raised immediately with the client’s senior person on duty.

• Work only within their training, competence, professional registration and the scope of the assignment.
• Check that required mobility aids, call systems and transfer equipment are available, safe to use and consistent with the person’s current plan.
• Observe for new or worsening factors that may increase falls risk, including acute confusion, dizziness, weakness, pain, reduced mobility, infection symptoms, dehydration, altered consciousness or a recent change in medicines.
• Escalate a material change promptly to the client’s registered nurse, clinician or senior person on duty rather than independently changing a clinical plan.
• Obtain consent before providing assistance, except where urgent action is legally justified to prevent serious harm.
• Preserve the scene and relevant equipment following a serious incident where this can be done safely and where investigation may be required.

• Comply with the client’s falls prevention procedures
• Follow good practice in safe moving and handling
• Support clients with safe mobility, including using walking aids and assisting with transfers
• Promptly report any observed hazards such as slippery floors, poor lighting, loose mats, or inadequate footwear
• Encourage clients to use prescribed mobility aids appropriately
• Supervise clients at higher risk of falls in line with their care plan
• Contribute to falls risk assessments by communicating observations to client staff

Temporary workers must not independently introduce restraint, bedrails, sensor equipment, continuous observation, locked access, removal of mobility aids or any other restrictive measure. An urgent and temporary intervention may be used only where it is immediately necessary to prevent harm, is proportionate to the risk, is the least restrictive available option and is permitted by law and the worker’s competence. Any such intervention must be reported and documented immediately.

9. Identifying and Managing Falls Risks

Temporary workers must be alert to:

• Environmental risks: poor lighting, uneven flooring, cluttered walkways, wet surfaces, or inaccessible call bells
• Client factors: muscle weakness, poor vision, confusion, medication side effects, footwear issues, or illness
• Changes in behaviour or function: new confusion, distress, agitation, impulsivity, fear of falling, reduced mobility, altered sleep, or difficulty, reluctance or inability to use mobility aids as planned.

• Recent falls, near misses or unexplained injuries.
• Dizziness, fainting, postural symptoms or loss of consciousness.
• Acute illness, delirium, infection, dehydration or hypoglycaemia.
• Medicines associated with dizziness, sedation, low blood pressure or impaired balance, recognising that formal medicines review must be undertaken by an appropriately qualified professional.
• Unsafe, poorly fitted, unavailable or unfamiliar mobility equipment.
• Toileting urgency, continence needs or inability to reach the toilet safely.
• Inappropriate footwear, foot pain or foot problems.
• Visual or hearing impairment.
• Alcohol or substance effects where relevant.
• Environmental change, unfamiliar surroundings or a recent transfer between services.

Temporary workers must:

• Take immediate, proportionate action to control a simple hazard where this can be done safely and within the worker’s role, such as guarding a wet area, placing a warning sign, moving an obstruction or contacting the appropriate cleaning or facilities team. A worker must not undertake cleaning or maintenance tasks for which they lack suitable equipment, training or protection.
• Report unresolved hazards to the client organisation and {{org_field_name}}
• Record all identified hazards and actions taken
• Document concerns about individual clients’ mobility or falls risk

Temporary workers may contribute observations to a falls assessment, but they must not complete or alter a clinical multifactorial falls assessment unless they are authorised, appropriately qualified and competent to do so. Concerns requiring clinical assessment must be referred to the appropriate client clinician or multidisciplinary team.

10. Supporting Safe Mobility

Temporary workers must:

• Encourage independence while supporting safety
• Apply appropriate moving and handling techniques in line with their training
• Use equipment correctly (e.g., hoists, transfer belts) following client protocols
• Do not manually lift a fallen person from the floor. Follow the client’s post-fall assessment and moving-and-handling procedure and use the assessed method and appropriate equipment. Where emergency movement is immediately necessary to prevent greater harm, use the safest practicable method within the worker’s competence and summon assistance without delay.
• Always consider client preferences, dignity, and comfort during mobility assistance
• Ensure call bells and essential items are within clients’ reach

• Do not improvise transfer techniques or use equipment that is damaged, unavailable, unfamiliar or inconsistent with the person’s current plan.
• Complete visual pre-use checks required by local procedure and immediately remove from use or report equipment that appears defective.
• Do not change a mobility aid, transfer method, sling, hoist arrangement or level of assistance without an authorised reassessment.
• Ensure that the person has appropriate footwear, glasses, hearing aids and mobility equipment where these form part of the person’s plan.
• Encourage safe activity, strength, balance and independence only in accordance with the person’s assessed plan and professional advice.
• Never use a hoist or lifting device unless trained and assessed as competent in the relevant type of equipment and technique.

11. Managing a Fall Incident

Where a person has fallen, the temporary worker must:

• ensure their own safety and the safety of others before approaching;
• remain calm, reassure the person, protect their dignity and summon appropriate assistance;
• not lift, reposition or encourage the person to stand until an appropriate initial assessment has been completed, unless leaving the person in that position presents a greater immediate danger;
• follow the client organisation’s post-fall and emergency procedure;
• obtain urgent clinical assistance from the registered nurse, clinician or senior person on duty;
• call 999, or ensure that 999 is called, where there is a life-threatening emergency, serious injury or other indication in the client’s emergency procedure;
• provide first aid or emergency care only within their training and competence;
• observe and report relevant information, including whether the fall was witnessed, possible head impact, loss of consciousness, seizure activity, pain, bleeding, deformity, change in behaviour, use of anticoagulant medicines if known, and any immediate environmental hazard;
• avoid giving food, drink or non-prescribed medication until this is considered safe under the client’s procedure;
• keep the person warm, comfortable and under appropriate observation while awaiting assessment;
• not use lifting equipment until the person has been assessed as suitable for the planned method of recovery;
• preserve relevant evidence, including equipment involved, where a serious incident or equipment failure is suspected and where this can be done without creating further risk;
• record the facts, observations, escalation, advice received, actions and outcome contemporaneously or as soon as reasonably practicable;
• report the incident through the client organisation’s system and to {{org_field_name}} before the end of the shift, or immediately where the incident is serious, safeguarding-related or likely to affect the worker’s fitness or ability to continue the assignment; and
• remain available to provide a factual account and co-operate with any lawful investigation.

A temporary worker must not diagnose the cause of a fall unless qualified and authorised to do so. The worker must distinguish clearly in records between what they personally observed, what the person or another witness reported, and any professional opinion provided by a clinician.

12. Unwitnessed Falls and Possible Head Injury

An unwitnessed fall must be treated cautiously because the mechanism of the fall and the possibility of head impact may be unknown. Temporary workers must follow the client organisation’s specific procedure, promptly alert the responsible clinician or senior person and accurately report any evidence of:

• possible head impact;
• loss of consciousness or an unexplained period of unresponsiveness;
• seizure;
• vomiting;
• worsening headache;
• new confusion, drowsiness, weakness or speech difficulty;
• bleeding or fluid from the nose or ears;
• anticoagulant or antiplatelet medication, where known;
• significant neck, back, hip or limb pain; or
• deterioration after the event.

Temporary workers must not undertake neurological observations unless this is within their role, they have been trained and assessed as competent, and the client organisation has authorised them to do so. Any required observation schedule must be prescribed or directed through the client’s clinical procedure.

13. Post-Fall Procedures

Temporary workers must:

• Follow the instructions arising from the immediate post-fall assessment and the person’s revised care plan.
• Observe for and immediately escalate delayed or worsening symptoms, including increasing pain, reduced mobility, bruising, swelling, vomiting, drowsiness, confusion, weakness, altered behaviour or any other deterioration.

• Record all post-fall observations and interventions
• Attend debriefs with client staff if requested
• Reflect on the incident and identify learning points with support from {{org_field_name}} where appropriate

• Ensure that required observations and reassessments are handed over clearly to the person taking over care.
• Confirm that the fall has been communicated to the relevant senior or clinician and entered into the client’s incident-reporting system.
• Contribute factual observations to any review of possible causes and preventative actions.
• Do not independently amend medicines, observation schedules, mobility arrangements, equipment or care plans unless authorised and competent to do so.
• Follow any client procedure for informing relatives or representatives; temporary workers must not make such contact independently unless expressly authorised.
• Where abuse, neglect, unsafe staffing, defective equipment or a repeated failure to respond to known risk is suspected, follow safeguarding and speaking-up procedures without delay.

Following a fall, the client organisation should consider whether the person requires a comprehensive falls assessment or review of an existing assessment. The review should be individualised and may require multidisciplinary input. A simple risk score must not be treated as a substitute for professional assessment and clinical judgement.

14. Record Keeping, Confidentiality and Information Sharing

Temporary workers must make clear, accurate, factual, contemporaneous and legible records in accordance with the client organisation’s procedure and any applicable professional code. Records must include, where relevant:

• the date, time and precise location of the fall or near miss;
• whether the event was witnessed;
• the person’s position when found;
• the person’s account and the account of any witness;
• relevant observations and apparent injuries;
• immediate hazards or equipment involved;
• assistance requested and the time it was requested;
• clinical advice or emergency instructions received;
• actions taken and by whom;
• the person’s condition and destination following the incident;
• who was informed and when;
• any refusal of assessment or treatment and the action taken in response; and
• the worker’s name, role, signature or electronic identifier.

Records must distinguish fact from opinion and must not contain blame, speculation, discriminatory language, unsupported conclusions or retrospective alteration. Any late entry or correction must be made transparently in accordance with the applicable records procedure.

Information about a person’s health, fall or injury is confidential personal data and will usually include special category data. Temporary workers and office staff must:

• access and share only the information necessary for care, safety, safeguarding, legal compliance or incident management;
• use approved, secure systems and communication channels;
• verify recipients before disclosing information;
• not retain photographs, records or identifiable information on personal devices;
• not discuss incidents on social media or with unauthorised persons;
• promptly report any actual or suspected data breach; and
• comply with the agency’s and client organisation’s applicable retention and disposal arrangements.

{{org_field_name}} will retain agency incident records in accordance with its documented retention schedule and will not retain personal data for longer than is necessary for the identified lawful purpose.

15. RIDDOR and Other External Notifications

An internal incident report does not automatically constitute a report under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013.

Following a serious fall or related event, the client organisation and {{org_field_name}} must promptly establish, in accordance with their respective legal responsibilities and contractual arrangements:

• who is the “responsible person” for RIDDOR purposes;
• whether the incident arose out of or in connection with work;
• whether the outcome falls within a reportable category;
• who will submit any required report; and
• what records and evidence must be retained.

A fall by a person receiving care is not reportable under RIDDOR merely because it occurred on care premises or resulted in injury. Reportability depends on the statutory criteria, including whether the accident was work-related and whether the specified reporting threshold is met. Falls or injuries affecting temporary workers must also be considered under the relevant worker-reporting provisions.

Temporary workers must not submit a RIDDOR report on behalf of either organisation unless expressly authorised. They must, however, report the facts immediately and co-operate with the person responsible for determining reportability.

Where the client organisation is CQC-registered, it remains responsible for considering any notification required by the Health and Social Care Act 2008 regulatory framework. {{org_field_name}} will provide relevant information and co-operate with that process but will not represent itself as the registered provider.

16. Safeguarding

A single fall does not, by itself, establish abuse or neglect. However, deliberate disregard of known risks, repeated failure to follow an assessed plan, failure to obtain necessary medical assistance, unsafe restraint, falsification or concealment of records, systemic failures, defective equipment left unaddressed, or placing a person at avoidable risk may indicate neglect, organisational abuse or another safeguarding concern.

Temporary workers must:

• Report concerns where they believe clients are being placed at risk due to unsafe environments or poor care practices
• Report concerns to both the client’s responsible person and {{org_field_name}} in line with the Safeguarding Adults and Children Policy
• Cooperate fully with safeguarding investigations or audits

• Make an immediate safeguarding referral through the client organisation’s route where required by local procedure.
• Notify {{org_field_name}} immediately of any suspected abuse, neglect, concealment, unsafe instruction or retaliation for raising a concern.
• Escalate outside the immediate management line where the concern involves that manager, has not been acted upon or presents continuing risk.
• Contact emergency services where a person is in immediate danger.
• Preserve evidence and maintain confidentiality.
• Use the Whistleblowing and Speaking Up Policy where unsafe practice is systemic or concerns are not appropriately addressed.

A temporary worker must not delay urgent protective action because they are uncertain whether the matter meets a formal safeguarding threshold. The worker must report the facts and allow the appropriate safeguarding lead or authority to determine the next steps.

17. Training and Competence

{{org_field_name}} will:

• Provide role-appropriate induction before workers undertake assignments involving people at risk of falls. Training will cover falls awareness, environmental hazards, person-centred risk management, mental capacity and consent, restrictive practice, post-fall response, emergency escalation, incident reporting, safeguarding, confidentiality and the limits of the worker’s role.

• Verify role-specific moving-and-handling competence before a worker is expected to assist with transfers or use lifting equipment.
• Identify whether a client requires competence in particular equipment or procedures and ensure this is addressed before the worker undertakes the task.
• Maintain records of training, competence assessments, expiry dates and refresher requirements.
• Suspend a worker from relevant duties where there is reason to believe that competence has lapsed or where an incident raises a material safety concern, pending proportionate review.
• Review training following a serious incident, recurring near misses, a change in assignment requirements or an update to national guidance.
• Make reasonable adjustments to training and assessment where required by the Equality Act 2010, without reducing essential safety or competence standards.
• Ensure that refresher training and reassessment are completed at intervals determined by risk, role, equipment, client requirements, evidence of competence, incident learning and changes in legislation or recognised guidance. Attendance at training alone must not be treated as proof of practical competence.
• Support registered nurses to meet their obligations under the NMC Code related to safe care and falls prevention

Temporary workers must:

• Complete all mandatory training before undertaking assignments
• Seek support if unsure about any aspect of falls prevention or management
• Engage in reflective practice as part of ongoing supervision and development

• Inform {{org_field_name}} and the client immediately where they have not received an adequate local induction or cannot safely perform an assigned task.
• Decline and escalate any task outside their competence rather than improvising.
• Maintain any professional registration, continuing professional development and role-specific competence required for the assignment.

18. Director’s Responsibilities

The director or designated policy owner of {{org_field_name}} is responsible for:

• Overseeing the implementation, monitoring, and review of this policy
• Ensuring all temporary workers are trained and competent in falls prevention and management
• Reviewing all reported incidents of falls and near misses involving temporary workers
• Investigating concerns, complaints, or safeguarding issues related to falls
• Ensuring lessons learned from incidents are incorporated into training and policy reviews
• Collaborating with client organisations to improve falls prevention strategies

• Ensuring that contracts with client organisations clearly allocate induction, risk information, supervision, equipment, incident investigation, safeguarding and statutory-notification responsibilities.
• Ensuring appropriate enquiries are made about health and safety risks and required competence before placements are accepted.
• Monitoring whether workers receive necessary local information and induction.
• Ensuring serious incidents are escalated to insurers, legal advisers, regulators or enforcing authorities where appropriate.
• Ensuring incident records are handled in accordance with data-protection requirements.
• Identifying repeated incidents, unsafe placements or clients that do not provide adequate information, equipment or supervision.
• Suspending or terminating a placement where risks cannot be adequately controlled.
• Reviewing whether an incident indicates a training, recruitment, placement, supervision, contractual or systemic failure.

19. Working with Client Organisations

{{org_field_name}} will work with client organisations to establish safe arrangements for temporary workers and people receiving care. Before or at the start of an assignment, the agency will seek confirmation that the client organisation will:

• provide relevant assignment-risk information;
• provide an appropriate local induction;
• make current care plans, falls assessments and moving-and-handling plans accessible to workers who need them;
• provide suitable, maintained equipment and instructions for its use;
• identify the senior person or clinician to whom concerns must be escalated;
• provide access to emergency and incident-reporting procedures;
• provide appropriate day-to-day direction and supervision;
• inform the agency of material incidents, restrictions or competence concerns; and
• co-operate in investigations and learning reviews.

{{org_field_name}} will:

• supply workers whose verified qualifications, experience and competence are appropriate to the information provided by the client;
• communicate relevant restrictions or reasonable adjustments, subject to data-protection requirements;
• promptly investigate concerns relating to the conduct or competence of its workers;
• share necessary information lawfully and securely;
• participate in proportionate incident reviews and safeguarding enquiries; and
• take action where a placement presents uncontrolled risk.

Where a client organisation does not provide essential information, induction, equipment, supervision or safe systems of work, the worker must notify {{org_field_name}}. The agency will consider whether the assignment can safely continue and may withdraw the worker where adequate controls cannot be secured.

20. Equality, Communication and Reasonable Adjustments

Falls prevention and response must not discriminate on the basis of age, disability, race, sex, religion or belief, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, pregnancy or maternity, marriage or civil partnership, or any other legally protected characteristic.

Information and instructions must be communicated in a form the person can understand. Relevant adjustments may include:

• interpreters or communication support;
• accessible written or visual information;
• hearing, visual or cognitive aids;
• additional time to understand and make decisions;
• culturally appropriate communication;
• adapted equipment; or
• involvement of a representative, advocate or person lawfully authorised to support decision-making.

Age or disability must not be treated as sufficient reason to restrict movement or independence. Decisions must be based on individual assessment, need, capacity, wishes and proportionate risk management.

21. Continuous Improvement

The director will:

• Review this policy annually, or sooner if required by changes in legislation, national guidance, or organisational need
• Analyse incident data to identify trends and areas for improvement
• Adjust training and placement protocols in response to audit findings or incident analysis
• Foster a culture of learning and continuous improvement in falls prevention and management

• Audit whether client assignment information and local induction are obtained consistently.
• Review falls and near-miss data separately for workers and people receiving care.
• Examine trends by client, location, shift, worker role, activity, equipment and severity, using anonymised or minimised information wherever practicable.
• Monitor whether concerns raised by temporary workers are acknowledged and acted upon.
• Share learning without disclosing unnecessary personal information.
• Assess the effectiveness of corrective actions rather than closing incidents solely because an investigation has been completed.
• Review the policy following a fatality, serious injury, repeated incident pattern, relevant enforcement action or material change in national guidance.

22. Policy Review

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

• legislation or statutory guidance changes;
• NICE, HSE, NHS or other recognised national guidance is materially updated;
• a serious incident, safeguarding concern, complaint, claim or enforcement matter identifies a gap;
• audit or incident trends indicate that the policy is not effective;
• the agency changes its services or begins to direct or control care in a way that may affect its regulatory status; or
• contractual or operational responsibilities between the agency and client organisations change.

Updated versions will be communicated to affected office staff and temporary workers. Material changes will be incorporated into training, assignment information and contractual arrangements where necessary.

References to CQC requirements in this policy apply to work performed within CQC-registered client services. They do not constitute a statement that {{org_field_name}} is registered with CQC or carries on a regulated activity.

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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}}
Copyright © {{current_year}} – {{org_field_name}}. All rights reserved.