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NHS Accessible Information Standard: find out what's changed in England

Blind and partially sighted people have a legal right to receive accessible health and care information and communication support, but far too often this right is not being turned into a reality.

NHS England has just published an updated version of the Accessible Information Standard. The Standard outlines how NHS and publicly funded adult social care services need to provide accessible information to people with communication needs, including blind and partially sighted people.

RNIB cautiously welcomes the updated Standard as a step forward. It includes some improvements but further progress is needed, and we want all parts of the health and care system to take further action, to ensure that accessible health and care information is consistently put into practice.

Why accessible health and care information is so important

Blind and partially sighted people, and people with other communication needs, have a legal right to receive accessible health and care information and communication support. This includes receiving information in our required alternative formats such as large print, email, audio, braille, easy read and British Sign Language.

Khadija Raza, RNIB Policy Lead for Accessibility, said:

“When blind and partially sighted people receive accessible information, it enables us to manage our health and care with the same level of independence and privacy as everyone else.

However, too often our rights are not upheld, leading to missed medical appointments, delayed test results, misunderstood treatment instructions and unread medication labels and letters from doctors. This creates serious risks to our health and wellbeing, affecting patient safety, independence, privacy and dignity.”

RNIB and partner organisations including RNID, SignHealth, Sense, Thomas Pocklington Trust, Macular Society and Mencap have campaigned for four years for an updated and improved NHS Accessible Information Standard.

RNIB’s joint report titled “Review of the NHS Accessible Information Standard 2022” highlights the scale of the problem: 77 per cent of people with accessible information needs reported rarely or never receiving information in alternative formats.

What has changed in the updated Standard?

  • The updated Standard aims to address some of the ongoing barriers to accessible health and care information. Improvements include: A new “review” stage requiring NHS services to proactively check that patients’ needs are up to date in their records and being met.
  • All health and social care organisations should appoint a senior named role responsible for overseeing the Standard being put into practice.
  • NHS Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) have increased responsibilities under the updated Standard as commissioners of health and care services. This includes:
    1. Ensuring that NHS and social care providers in their area follow the Standard.
    2. Appointing a senior named role at board level, with responsibility for the Standard within their portfolio.
  • All NHS and social care organisations must complete annual improvement plans to assess how well they are meeting the Standard. This can be done through a new NHS provider self-assessment tool.

Further progress is needed

Despite some improvements, RNIB is still concerned about three critical elements in making accessible health information a reality for blind and partially sighted people. These are:

NHS and social care IT systems

These systems must be fit for purpose, able and required to record, flag, and update communication needs, and share these communication requirements with other NHS and social care services when appropriate. The updated Standard does not adequately address this issue, which we know to be a major barrier to fulfilling patients’ communication needs.

Improving NHS and social care staff training

NHS and social care providers need to ensure their staff have a greater awareness of the importance of accessible information and improve their skills to provide this essential support. This training needs to be mandatory and co-created by people with communication needs.

Clear accountability 

The annual improvement plans of NHS and social care providers will not be reviewed by NHS England, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) or the Care Quality Commission as a standard practice. Without oversight, progress in accessible health and care information will be difficult to track.

What needs to happen next?

What’s most important now is that the updated Standard is fully implemented across NHS and social care services, with full support from the DHSC to make sure this happens.

As a vital next step, Minister for Care Stephen Kinnock must prioritise further strengthening of the Standard and make it mandatory under section 95 of the Health and Care Act 2022.

The recent launch of the Government’s 10 Year Health Plan for the NHS in England sets out an ambition for patients to have greater control of their healthcare. It was therefore disappointing to see no specific commitment in the Plan to fully implement the updated Standard, or to further strengthen the Standard and make it mandatory.

Real patient empowerment will only be achieved if people with communication needs have equal access to health and care information. The benefits would not only include better health and care outcomes, but also cost savings for the NHS, such as reducing the number of missed appointments caused by inaccessible appointment letters.

The campaign continues

RNIB will continue campaigning for accessible healthcare information and stands ready to support the NHS to fulfil its responsibilities. With the updated Standard now in place, we’re contacting all Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) in England to remind them of their responsibilities. We’re also working with a number of NHS services across England to assist them in meeting the communication needs of their blind and partially sighted patients.

More information and resources

If you’re blind or partially sighted, we have a guide on how to request accessible health and care information, and the steps you can take if you don’t receive it.

Download the RNIB guide

For more information about the updated NHS Accessible Information Standard, read our “frequently asked questions”.

NHS Accessible Information Standard: frequently asked questions

If you work in the NHS or in social care, RNIB has resources on providing accessible information for blind and partially sighted people. Further information and guidance on implementing accessible information can be found on the NHS England website.

View RNIB resources for NHS and social care staff

View NHS England information and guidance