1. Purpose
Helping a person move, transfer or reposition is one of the most common and most risky tasks in home care. A person's home is not a designed care setting: space is tight, furniture is in the way, and the equipment a worker would have in a care home may not be there. This policy sets out how the Service assesses and carries out moving and handling safely in the person's own home, for both the person and the worker.
The Service must verify this policy against current health and safety law and HSE guidance before adoption.
2. Sources to verify before adoption
- Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1992/2793/contents
- Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, section 2: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1974/37/section/2
- HSE, moving and handling in health and social care: https://www.hse.gov.uk/healthservices/moving-handling.htm
- Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, Regulation 12 (safe care and treatment): https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2014/2936/regulation/12
3. Scope
This policy applies to:
- every move, transfer, reposition or support with mobility the Service provides in a person's home
- the equipment used to do it
- the workers who carry it out and the senior staff who assess and review it
4. Risk assessment in the person's home
Before a worker carries out any moving and handling, the Service completes a moving and handling assessment for that person in their own home. It is reviewed when the person's needs, the home or the equipment change, and after any incident. The assessment records:
- what the person can do for themselves and what help they need
- the specific moves and transfers needed, and how each is to be done
- the equipment to be used for each move
- whether the move can be done safely by one worker or needs two
- the space, furniture, flooring and any hazards in the rooms where moves happen
- the person's wishes, comfort and dignity
Each move is written up as a clear instruction so that every worker does it the same safe way.
5. The home environment
The home is assessed as the place the move actually happens. The Service:
- checks there is enough space to use the equipment and move safely
- agrees with the person any changes that make moves safer, such as moving furniture or clearing a route
- records where a hazard cannot be removed and how the risk is managed instead
6. Equipment in the home
Where equipment is needed, the Service:
- records which equipment is required and confirms it is in the home before the move is attempted
- checks that hoists, stand aids, slide sheets, slings and similar are the right type and size for the person and the move
- confirms equipment is serviced and in working order, and does not use equipment that is damaged or out of service
- ensures workers are trained on the specific equipment in that home, not equipment in general
If the right equipment is missing or unsafe, the worker does not improvise. They contact the office, and the move is not carried out unsafely.
7. One worker or two
The assessment states clearly whether each move needs one worker or two. The Service does not ask a worker to carry out a two-person move alone. Where a two-person move is needed, two workers are rostered for it.
8. What workers do and do not do
- Workers carry out moves only as set out in the person's assessment, using the named equipment and technique.
- Workers do not lift a person manually except where there is an immediate risk to life and no safe alternative.
- A worker who is asked or tempted to carry out a move that is unsafe, or for which the equipment is missing, stops and contacts the office.
9. When a person falls
If a person falls, the worker follows the post-fall steps in the falls guidance: check for injury, get medical help if needed, and do not lift the person manually. An uninjured person is helped up using the agreed safe method and equipment, not by manual lifting. The fall is recorded and reported.
10. Reporting and learning
- A worker reports any moving and handling incident, near miss, injury or equipment fault the same working day.
- The Service records it, checks whether the person or the worker was harmed, and acts on equipment faults at once.
- Incidents run through to a recorded outcome with actions completed, and are reviewed together to find patterns.
11. Training
Every worker who carries out moving and handling completes, at induction and on a refresher cadence:
- safe moving and handling, assessed in practice and not only in the classroom
- the use of the specific equipment they will use
- what to do when equipment is missing or unsafe, and after a fall
The Service records who is competent and when each refresher is due, and removes a worker from moving and handling tasks if a concern arises until it is resolved.
12. Audit cadence
The Service checks, on a stated cadence, that:
- every person needing moving and handling has a current assessment with clear instructions
- the equipment named in each assessment is present, serviced and safe
- two-person moves are rostered for two workers
- incidents and equipment faults are reported, recorded and learned from
- training and competency are up to date
The Registered Manager reviews the results and records the improvement actions that follow.