CQC publishes new agreement with Equality and Human Rights Commission

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has published a new memorandum of understanding (MoU) agreement with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).

This agreement, according to CQC, will aim to increase the effectiveness of both organisations to safeguard the wellbeing and rights of people receiving health and social care in England.

The agreement sets out the ways in which CQC will work with EHRC across a number of key areas, including areas of mutual regulatory interest, cross referral of concerns, commissioning of research and reviews of research and more.

In particular, the CQC and EHRC will jointly work together on identifying equality and human rights policy issues arising from COVID-19.

The two organisations will also work together to protect the human rights of people in health and social care settings who have been most at risk of rights breaches – including work on closed cultures and reform of the Mental Health Act.

CQC and EHRC will also collaborate for better leadership on equality for staff working in the NHS and social care.

“This agreement will ensure CQC and EHRC continue to work well together as we have been doing throughout the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Ian Trenholm, chief executive of CQC.

“The MoU sets out how we will share knowledge and expertise in a number of important areas including protecting people most at risk of having their human rights breached and addressing issues of equality in health and social care,” he added.