A duty of care is the legal and professional obligation to act in the best interests of the people you support and to avoid anything that could reasonably be expected to cause them harm. It is not a policy you sign once at induction — it is the standard every decision is measured against, and it applies from the moment you take responsibility for someone’s care.
This guide explains what duty of care means in health and social care, where it comes from in law, how it works day to day, and what to do when it conflicts with a person’s own choices.
What duty of care means
Duty of care means you must take reasonable care to keep the people you support safe from harm, and act in their best interests within the limits of your role. “Reasonable” is the key word: you are not expected to prevent every conceivable accident, but you are expected to act as a reasonably competent person in your position would.
It applies to everyone in a caring role — care workers, support workers, nurses, volunteers — and it runs in more than one direction. Your employer also owes a duty of care to you.
Where duty of care comes from
It is not one law but several overlapping sources:
- Common law negligence — the long-standing principle that if you owe someone a duty of care, breach it, and cause harm, you can be held liable.
- The Care Act 2014 — the wellbeing principle running through adult social care.
- Health and Social Care Act 2008 regulations — the fundamental standards the Care Quality Commission inspects against, including safe care and treatment.
- Professional codes — such as the NMC Code for registered nurses.
- Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 — the employer’s duty to staff, and staff duties to each other.
What it looks like in practice
Duty of care is delivered in ordinary, unglamorous actions:
- Following the care plan — and reporting when it no longer fits the person.
- Working within your competence, and saying so when a task is beyond it.
- Escalating changes in someone’s condition rather than waiting to see.
- Recording accurately and promptly, because the next person relies on it.
- Raising safeguarding concerns — see our guide to safeguarding.
- Speaking up about unsafe practice, including a colleague’s.
Duty of care vs duty of candour
These two are often confused. Duty of care is the ongoing obligation to prevent harm. Duty of candour is what must happen after a notifiable safety incident causes harm: the provider must be open with the person or their family, explain what happened, and apologise. One prevents failure; the other governs honesty when prevention fails.
The hardest part: duty of care vs a person’s right to choose
The most common dilemma in care is a person choosing something you believe is unsafe. Duty of care does not give you authority to override them.
A person with capacity has the right to make decisions others think unwise, and the Mental Capacity Act 2005 states plainly that an unwise decision is not evidence of incapacity. The right approach is to make sure they have the information, discuss and record the risks, agree steps that reduce the danger without removing the choice, and escalate where the risk is serious. Genuinely person-centred care holds both things at once: keeping someone safe and respecting who they are.
When duty of care is breached
Consequences scale with severity — supervision and retraining at one end, CQC enforcement, regulator referral, negligence claims or in the gravest cases criminal charges such as wilful neglect at the other. In reality most breaches are not cruelty. They are omissions under pressure: the concern not passed on, the care plan not followed, the deterioration not escalated. That is precisely why the everyday habits above matter.
Duty of care is Standard 3 of the Care Certificate, which every new care worker completes.
Frequently asked questions
What is duty of care?
A duty of care is the legal and professional obligation to act in the best interests of the people you support, to keep them safe, and to avoid any act or omission that could reasonably be expected to cause them harm. In health and social care it applies to everyone in a caring role, from care workers and nurses to volunteers, and it begins the moment you take responsibility for someone’s care.
Where does duty of care come from in law?
It comes from several places at once. The common law of negligence establishes that where you owe someone a duty of care, you can be liable if you breach it and cause harm. The Care Act 2014 places wellbeing duties on local authorities and providers, the Health and Social Care Act 2008 regulations set the standards the Care Quality Commission inspects against, and professional codes such as the NMC Code apply to registered staff. Employers also owe a duty of care to their workers under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
What is the difference between duty of care and duty of candour?
Duty of care is the ongoing obligation to act in someone’s best interests and avoid causing them harm. Duty of candour is what happens after something goes wrong: a specific regulatory requirement on care providers to be open and honest with the person (or their family) when a notifiable safety incident has caused harm, to explain what happened, and to apologise. Candour is the honesty obligation that follows a failure; duty of care is the obligation to prevent one.
How do you balance duty of care with a person’s right to make unwise decisions?
This is the most common duty of care dilemma. A person with mental capacity has the legal right to make decisions others consider unwise, and the Mental Capacity Act 2005 is explicit that an unwise decision does not by itself mean someone lacks capacity. Duty of care does not entitle you to override that choice. The correct approach is to make sure the person has all the information they need, record the conversation and the risks discussed, agree any reasonable steps that reduce the danger, and escalate to a senior colleague where the risk is serious.
What happens if you breach your duty of care?
Consequences depend on severity. Internally it may mean supervision, retraining or disciplinary action. Providers can face Care Quality Commission enforcement, and registered professionals can be referred to their regulator. Where a breach causes harm there may be a negligence claim against the employer, and in the most serious cases criminal charges such as wilful neglect. In practice most breaches are not deliberate cruelty but omissions under pressure: a concern not reported, a care plan not followed, a change in condition not escalated.
Further reading
Duty of care training
At a glance: Nexis CPD offers a £9 CPD-accredited online Duty of Care course — 100% online and self-paced, with an instant, verifiable e-certificate on passing.
Our Duty of Care course covers what duty of care means, where it comes from, how to apply it day to day, and how to handle conflicts between safety and personal choice.
Related: What is the Care Certificate? · Mental Capacity Act · Person-centred care · Safeguarding
£9 per course. CPD accredited, 100 % online, verifiable e-certificate on completion. Pay for 2, get 3 — any 3 courses for £18.
Please note: this is a CPD-accredited awareness course and general information, not legal advice or a substitute for your employer’s policies, supervision, and the role-specific competencies required in a regulated care setting. Where a specific situation involves serious risk or a capacity question, escalate to a senior colleague or the appropriate professional. It is not an Ofqual-regulated qualification.