Maternity services code of practice

Aims
Status
Application

Legislation: maternity services code of practice Maternity services code of practice: it is unlawful under the Race Relations Act to discriminate on racial grounds, either directly or indirectly. Racial grounds cover not only race, but also colour, nationality (including citizenship), and ethnic or national origin. Groups defined by reference to these grounds are referred to as racial groups.Planning and providing maternity services Maternity services code of practice: an explanation and definition of maternity services, and background information about employment patterns and service deliveryStrategies for good practice - maternity services All purchasers and providers of maternity services should adopt racial equality policies, and issue a general statement of their commitment to eliminate racial discrimination, and develop and provide services that meet the needs of all sections of the community. The policy should include a brief description of how the organisation is planning to achieve its objectives in each service area.

This page was last updated on 14 April 2005

Note: This code of practice was produced before the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 was passed.

Aims

The code has three aims:

To explain how the 1976 Race Relations Act applies to maternity services
To give detailed guidance on how to eliminate racial discrimination.
To give examples of good practice.

Top of this page

Status

The code does not have the force of law, nor is it an authoritative interpretation of the law; this can only be provided by the courts.

Top of this page

Application

The Race Relations Act 1976 applies to public and private health services and staff in England, Scotland, and Wales. The code covers:

Health authorities
NHS trusts and hospitals
Family health services authorities (FHSAs)
Practitioners and their staff
Community health councils
Local health boards (in Scotland)
Other relevant voluntary organisations

The recommendations in this code are relevant to anyone involved in providing maternity services. The CRE does not expect small practices to observe all the recommendations, or to adopt the detailed racial equality policies described in this code, but they must comply with the basic provisions of the Race Relations Act, and see that their work reflects the spirit of the code.

Top of this page