
The Patient Safety Principles have been developed as one of the Commissioner’s statutory duties following a public consultation which received over 800 responses. A detailed analysis of the responses is here. They provide a framework for decision making, planning and collaborative working with patients as partners in a just and learning culture and are for everyone working in the healthcare system.
Click here to view the full list of the Patient Safety Principles and click here for a toolkit on how to use the Principles.
See what people are saying about the Patient Safety Principles...
‘We welcome the principles set out by the Patient Safety Commissioner which align with NHS values. We remain committed to working in partnership with patients to improve safety across the system.’
Professor Sir Stephen Powis - NHS National Medical Director
‘As my recent investigation found, continuously improving patient safety must remain a priority for the NHS. The Patient Safety Principles helpfully apply many of the key elements of the NHS Constitution to the specific issue of patient safety. Leaders should reflect on how their organisation is putting the Principles into practice, and ensure they are embedded in how the NHS operates. These principles will support the NHS’s aim to deliver high quality care for all, all of the time.’
Lord Darzi
‘These principles reinforce our long-standing commitment to patients as equal partners in their care and in system-wide decision-making. To maximise their impact, we encourage healthcare leaders to implement these safety principles alongside our patient partnership framework, ensuring a comprehensive approach to patient-centred, safe healthcare.’
Rachel Power - Patients Association
‘It is crucial doctors work in effective environments where they feel safe, empowered, and safe to speak up, so they can provide the best patient care possible. How these principles will apply ultimately depends on the roles and responsibilities of the individual, but we believe they will be useful for all healthcare workers, whether providing leadership to colleagues, their organisation, profession, or the sector as a whole.’
Charlie Massey - Chief Executive of the General Medical Council
‘These Patient Safety Principles are an essential guide for organisations and leaders at all levels to ensure equity in the design and delivery of safer care for all patients. Robust application of the Patient Safety Principles will contribute towards efforts in tackling health inequalities and towards reducing avoidable harm. They provide a helpful framework for partnership working, planning and for meaningful engagement with patients from all backgrounds.’
Professor Habib Naqvi - NHS Race and Health Observatory
‘Effective use and sharing of data are crucial for improving patient safety and healthcare outcomes. Taken together, these principles refocus us on what matters most, offering clear guidance for the NHS at every level. They outline the behaviours we must champion – and, as leaders, exemplify – to ensure we provide the safe, effective, and compassionate patient care we all want and expect our NHS to provide.’
Dr Nicola Byrne - National Data Guardian for Health and Social Care
‘Too many avoidable errors in the NHS arise from ignoring patients’ concerns. We support these principles, which emphasise the importance of listening to patients to identify issues and learn when mistakes happen.’
Louise Ansari - Chief Executive of Healthwatch England
‘In endorsing these principles, the National Guardian’s Office recognises they key role leaders have in fostering the right environment to ensure patient safety, quality and equity is at the heart of all health care. Listening to, and working in partnership with, patients and workers is fundamental to this.’
Dr. Jayne Chidgey-Clark - National Guardian for the NHS
'New principles will help us make the right choices'

Every day we have to make tough choices, balancing benefits and risks. Those choices impact on patient safety, right now or far into the future, with effects that we might have never intended or anticipated.
There are too many tragedies where people have been harmed by a healthcare system that is slow, siloed and disjointed and does not listen.
Harm is not abstract but it is hidden from view, in patients’ homes and with wide-ranging impacts on people’s lives. Harm is compounded when the healthcare system turns its back on those who have suffered. When it does not listen to the voices of patients and those caring for them and does not put things right. Disadvantaged communities who need our closest attention have worse outcomes and face greater barriers to speaking up.
We need to turn this around and have clear accountability for decisions…