Legislation – Care Act 2014

Care Act 2014, Cross Heading: National functions is up to date with all changes known to be in force on or before 01 April 2026. There are changes that may be brought into force at a future date. Changes that have been made appear in the content and are referenced with annotations.

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PART 3Health

CHAPTER 1The Education and Training Functions of NHS England

National functions

97Planning education and training for health care workers etc.

(1)

F1NHS England must perform on behalf of the Secretary of State the duty under section 1F(1) of the National Health Service Act 2006 (planning and delivery of education and training), so far as that duty applies to the functions of the Secretary of State under—

(a)

section 63(1) and (5) of the Health Services and Public Health Act 1968 (instruction for officers of hospital authorities etc.),

(b)

section 258(1) of the National Health Service Act 2006 (university clinical teaching and research), and

(c)

such other of the enactments listed in section 1F(3) of that Act as regulations may specify.

(2)

Regulations may—

(a)

provide for the duty under section 1F(1) of the National Health Service Act 2006 to apply to such other functions of the Secretary of State as are specified; and

(b)

impose on F2NHS England a duty to perform the duty as it applies as a result of provision made under paragraph (a).

(3)

Regulations may provide that the duty under subsection (1) or a duty imposed under subsection (2) may only be performed, or may not be performed, in relation to persons of a specified description.

F3(4)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(5)

Regulations may give F4NHS England further functions relating to education and training for health care workers.

(6)

F5NHS England may, with the consent of the Secretary of State, carry out other activities relating to—

(a)

education and training for health care workers;

(b)

the provision of information and advice on careers in the health service.

(7)

After section 63(6) of the Health Services and Public Health Act 1968 insert—

“(6A)

The Secretary of State may make such other payments as the Secretary of State considers appropriate to persons availing themselves of such instruction in England.

(6B)

The Secretary of State may make a payment under subsection (6)(b) or (6A) subject to such terms and conditions as the Secretary of State decides; and the Secretary of State’s power to make such a payment includes power to suspend or terminate the payment, or to require repayment, in such circumstances as the Secretary of State decides.”

(8)

The power of the Secretary of State under section 63(6) or (6A) of the Health Services and Public Health Act 1968 is exercisable concurrently with F6NHS England; but, in exercising the power, F6NHS England must have regard to any guidance or other information issued by the Secretary of State about its exercise.

(9)

“Health care workers” means persons in relation to whom F7NHS England’s duty under section 1F(1) of the National Health Service Act 2006 is to be performed.

98Ensuring sufficient skilled health care workers for the health service

(1)

F8NHS England must exercise its functions F9under this Chapter with a view to ensuring that a sufficient number of persons with the skills and training to work as health care workers for the purposes of the health service is available to do so throughout England.

(2)

Regulations may provide that the duty under subsection (1) may only be performed, or may not be performed, in relation to persons of a specified description.

99Quality improvement in education and training, etc.

(1)

F10NHS England must exercise its functions F11under this Chapter with a view to securing continuous improvement—

(a)

in the quality of education and training provided for health care workers;

F12(b)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

F13(2)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

F14(3)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(4)

F15NHS England must exercise its functions F16under this Chapter with a view to securing that education and training for health care workers is provided in a way which promotes the NHS Constitution.

F17(5)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(6)

“NHS Constitution” has the meaning given by section 1(1) of the Health Act 2009.

100Objectives, priorities and outcomes

F18(1)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

F19(2)

The Secretary of State must publish a document (called the “Education Outcomes Framework”) setting outcomes for NHS England to achieve in relation to the education and training to be provided for health care workers.

(2A)

In setting those outcomes, the Secretary of State must have regard to any objectives that are specified in the mandate published under section 13A of the National Health Service Act 2006 and that relate to the education and training of health care workers.

(3)

The Secretary of State—

(a)

may revise a document published under subsection F20… (2), and

(b)

if the Secretary of State does so, must publish it as revised.

F21(4)

NHS England must publish a document which—

(a)

specifies—

(i)

the objectives and priorities that NHS England has set, for the period specified in the document, for the planning and delivery of education and training for health care workers, and

(ii)

how it proposes to achieve those objectives,

(b)

specifies—

(i)

the outcomes that NHS England expects to achieve in relation to the education and training of health care workers during that period having regard to those objectives and priorities, and

(ii)

how it proposes to achieve those outcomes, and

(c)

specifies how NHS England proposes to achieve the outcomes set by the Secretary of State in accordance with subsection (2).

(5)

In performing the duty under subsection (4), F22NHS England must have regard, in particular, to its objectives in the longer term in relation to the planning and delivery of education and training to health care workers.

(6)

F23NHS England must ensure that the objectives, priorities and outcomes specified for the purposes of subsection (4)(a) and (b) are consistent with those specified for the purposes of F24subsection (2) and any objectives specified for it in the mandate published under section 13A of the National Health Service Act 2006 that relate to the education and training of health care workers .

(7)

A document under subsection (4) may specify different periods in relation to different categories of health care worker.

(8)

F25NHS England must, before the end of 12 months beginning with the date on which a document under subsection (4) is published—

(a)

review the document, and,

(b)

if F25NHS England revises it, publish it as revised.

(9)

F26NHS England may perform the duty under subsection (4) by publishing two or more documents which, taken together, comply with that subsection.

(10)

F27NHS England must seek to achieve the objectives and outcomes and to reflect the priorities specified in any document—

(a)

published by the Secretary of State under subsection F28… (2) or (3);

(b)

published by F27NHS England under subsection (4) or (8).

101Sections 98 and 100: matters to which F29NHS England must have regard

(1)

In performing the duty under section 98(1) (ensuring sufficient skilled workers for the health service) or the duty under section 100(4) (setting objectives, priorities and outcomes for education and training), F30NHS England must have regard to the following matters in particular—

(a)

the likely future demand for health services and for persons with the skills and training to work as health care workers for the purposes of the health service,

(b)

the sustainability of the supply of persons with the skills and training to work as such,

(c)

the priorities that providers of health services have for the education and training of persons wishing to work as such,

F31(d)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(e)

the objectives of the Secretary of State in exercising public health functions (as defined by section 1H of that Act),

F32(f)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(g)

documents published by the Secretary of State under F33section 100(2) or (3),

(h)

the desirability of promoting the integration of health provision with health-related provision and care and support provision,

(i)

the desirability of enabling health care workers to switch between different posts relating to health provision, health-related provision or care and support provision, and

(j)

such other matters as regulations may specify.

F34(2)

In subsection (1)—

“health provision”, “health-related provision” and “care and support provision” each have the same meaning as in section 3;

“health services” means health services provided as part of the health service.

102Advice

(1)

F35NHS England must make arrangements for obtaining advice on the exercise of its functions F36under this Chapter from persons who are involved in, or who F35NHS England thinks otherwise have an interest in, the provision of education and training for health care workers.

(2)

F37NHS England must seek to ensure that it receives representations from the following, in particular, under the arrangements it makes under subsection (1)—

(a)

persons who provide health services;

(b)

persons to whom health services are provided;

(c)

carers for persons to whom health services are provided;

(d)

health care workers;

(e)

bodies which regulate health care workers;

(f)

persons who provide, or contribute to the provision of, education and training for health care workers.

(3)

F38NHS England may perform a duty under subsection (2) by seeking to ensure that it receives representations from organisations which represent the persons referred to in the paragraph in question.

(4)

F39NHS England must advise the Secretary of State on such matters relating to its functions F40under this Chapter as the Secretary of State may request; and a request under this subsection may specify how and when the advice is to be provided.

(5)

“Carer” means an adult who provides or intends to provide care for another person.