Guidance Notes and Best Practice Guides

EHRC: The Equality and Human Rights Commission recently launched a short, practical guide to help decision-makers put fairness & transparency at the heart of the difficult financial decisions ahead. It sets out what is expected of them & others to comply with the public sector equality duties.
 
The law requires that decisions are made in a fair, transparent & accountable way, considering the needs & the rights of different members of the community.  Where decisions are found to have a disproportionate impact on a particular group, authorities must consider what actions can be taken to avoid or mitigate the unfair impact.
Press release ~ Using the equality duties to make fair financial decisions
 
NICE: NICE has launched a new quality standard on specialist neonatal care services.  These services are defined as high-dependency, surgical or intensive care.
Press release ~ Quality standard on specialist neonatal care ~ Department of Health (DH): Toolkit for high quality neonatal services (2009) ~ RCOG: Standards for Maternity Care: report of a working party (2008) ~ Transparency in outcomes - a framework for the NHS consultation (closed)

FSA:  It is autumn and many of our hedgerows are prime sites for the traditional pursuits of gathering wild berries and hunting for mushrooms.  This harvest can contribute to our daily diet, but the Food Standards Agency is warning that care needs to be taken to make sure it is safe to eat.
Press release ~ FSA: Hedgerow Harvest
 
Newswire – LGA: Putting the National Land and Property Gazetteer (NLPG) at the heart of Council service delivery can save between £15m and £24m a recent local government report revealed.  The NLPG exemplifies one of a range of uses of geographic information that leads to productivity increases in local service provision.

The report coincides with the release of a new brochure 'Save money and deliver better services to citizens' sent out to every local authority, which outlines how the NLPG can help local authorities.
Press release ~ 'The Value of Geospatial Information to Local Public Service Delivery in England and Wales' ~ 'Save money and deliver better services to citizens'
 
Newswire – RoSPA: With fireworks going on sale last week, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents is urging people to spare a thought for safety before November 5. It advises that the safest place to enjoy fireworks is at an organised public display, but recognises that not everyone can get to one of these.
 
RoSPA’s fireworks website – www.saferfireworks.com – contains all you need to know about planning a safe fireworks party.  It has details about the law across the UK, including the licensing arrangements in Northern Ireland (where fireworks are traditionally used to celebrate Halloween) and tips for setting up a display.
Press release
 
NICE: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has published the outcome of an appeal hearing relating to its draft guidance on the use of lapatinib (Tyverb, GlaxoSmithKline) for certain breast cancer patients.
Press release ~ Lapatinib for breast cancer (for use in women with previously treated advanced or metastatic breast cancer)


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