HSC Wales April 2026 release notes

Welcome to the April 2026 policy updates. Please note policies are changing to a new format. We continue to update this article throughout April.

The registration titles have been reviewed and extensively updated. The Key Points have been removed, as the Copilot skill can be used to request these. A detailed Procedures section has been clearly separated out in the policies. For structured details on these policy updates, please see this>

This is a comprehensive restructure of the Safeguarding Adults Policy for domiciliary support services in Wales. The new version replaces the previous edition with a fully reorganised document that separates policy detail from operational procedures, adds Welsh language obligations throughout, introduces numbered procedural steps for responding to suspected abuse, and restructures Appendix 1 around the five core abuse categories defined in the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014. The update adds the national Wales Safeguarding Procedures as the primary procedural framework, expands the regulatory links section with descriptive explanations of each regulation, introduces CIW inspection theme mapping, adds references to the Violence against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (Wales) Act 2015, and replaces Adult Practice Review references with the new Single Unified Safeguarding Review (SUSR) framework alongside retained APR references. Terminology has been standardised from “service users” and “individuals” to “people we support” throughout.

This is a comprehensive restructure of the Infection Prevention and Control Policy for domiciliary support services in Wales. The new version replaces the previous edition with a fully reorganised document that separates policy detail from operational procedures, introduces a formal numbered section structure (Sections 1–7), adds new standalone procedures for reporting suspected infections, needlestick injuries and blood spillages, and significantly expands the regulatory links section. The update adds new regulation references (Regulations 14, 21, 34 and 36), introduces Welsh language obligations under the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 and Mwy na Geiriau / More than Just Words, standardises terminology from "individuals" to "people we support" throughout, and replaces the static notifiable diseases appendix with a reference to the Health Protection (Notification) Regulations 2010. The previous version's "Registered Manager" / "Care Home Manager" terminology has been corrected to "Domiciliary Support Service Manager" throughout to reflect the domiciliary care setting accurately.

This is a comprehensive restructure of the Whistleblowing Policy for domiciliary support services in Wales. The new version replaces the previous edition with a fully reorganised document that separates policy detail from operational procedures, introduces explicit timescales for acknowledgement, escalation, and investigation, and adds new content on Welsh language obligations, staff support mechanisms, record retention, and a stepped escalation route that now includes a pathway for concerns involving the Responsible Individual. The update expands the regulatory links section from a summary table to a detailed annotated reference, adds CIW inspection themes and the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014, and standardises terminology from mixed usage to consistent references throughout.

The policy for Care Home settings has been through the comprehensive update seen for Domiciliary Services last month, see the release notes>

In addition, this is a targeted update to the Disciplinary Policy for Domiciliary Support services, and these updates have also been added to the Care Home version. The new version adds content to reflect the Regulated Services (Inspection Ratings) (Wales) Regulations 2025 (effective 1 April 2025), introduces a new section on action short of suspension to strengthen compliance with Regulation 39(2)(a), adds provisions on subject access requests, cooperation with CIW during inspections, trade union consultation, and post-appeal signposting to Acas early conciliation. Two new references are added. No sections are removed. Formatting is standardised from markdown-style headings to bold headings throughout. The core disciplinary procedures, sanctions framework, and personalised fields are unchanged.

This is a comprehensive restructure of the Complaints and Compliments Policy for Wales. The new version replaces the previous edition with a fully reorganised document that expands the regulatory header to include explanatory descriptions and new legislation references, extends scope to cover both care home services and domiciliary support services, separates policy detail from operational procedures in a new Section 6, adds service-specific considerations for care home and domiciliary settings, strengthens Welsh language obligations with explicit Active Offer references, introduces specific timescales throughout the procedures, adds a new personalised field for complaints escalation, and adds the Children's Commissioner for Wales and Social Care Wales to the relevant contacts table.

This is a comprehensive restructure of the Training and Development policy for Wales (CIW-regulated care home and domiciliary support services). The new version replaces the previous edition with a fully reorganised document that separates policy detail from operational procedures, significantly expands the regulatory links section with descriptive regulation references and CIW inspection themes, introduces Welsh language obligations throughout (Mwy na Geiriau / More than Just Words and the Active Offer), and adds a standalone procedures section with three defined procedures covering the annual training plan, recording and monitoring, and addressing competence concerns. The scope has been broadened from domiciliary support services only to cover both care home services and domiciliary support services. Terminology has been standardised from "individuals" to "people we support" throughout.