The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published the ‘England Rare Diseases Action Plan 2026’, reporting progress under the UK Rare Diseases Framework and setting priorities ahead of its extension to January 2027. The framework identifies four priorities: (1) faster diagnosis; (2) increased awareness among healthcare professionals; (3) better coordination of care; and (4) access to specialist services, treatments and drugs. The plan outlines regulatory and system developments aimed at improving access to innovative therapies and strengthening diagnostic pathways. It also signals continued focus on reducing the ‘diagnostic odyssey’ experienced by many patients with rare diseases through reforms to genomic services and earlier identification of inherited conditions. All four UK nations have agreed to extend the framework to January 2027. Engagement with the rare disease community will inform remaining priorities and next steps beyond that date.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published financial directions for NHS England for the periods 2025–26 and 2026–27. The revised financial directions for 2025–26 replace and revoke those issued on 31 March 2025 and detail the updated budgets for 2026. Meanwhile, the financial directions for 2026–27 establish the budgets for 2027. Both sets of directions outline how NHS England's budget is allocated for their respective periods and operate under the government’s 2025 ‘Road to Recovery’ mandate to NHS England, which sets forth objectives applicable from 30 January 2025 until they are replaced.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has released findings from its call for evidence on the statutory duty of candour for health and social care providers in England. Launched in April 2024, the consultation received 261 responses from stakeholders including patients, healthcare professionals and organisations. Key findings highlight inconsistent understanding and application of the duty, concerns about organisational culture and perceived lack of accountability. The report precedes a final response to the duty of candour review, with publication accelerated due to developments such as the Infected Blood Inquiry report and the government's commitment to a Hillsborough Law. The findings will inform ongoing policy development on candour in healthcare, alongside a separate consultation on the regulation of NHS managers.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS Resolution have published a framework agreement on covering their working relationship through 2029. The agreement, approved by HM Treasury, establishes the governance, accountability and financial management arrangements under which NHS Resolution, a special health authority, operates, and confirms that the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care remains accountable to Parliament with powers of direction and key appointment responsibilities. It outlines NHS Resolution’s statutory functions, including administering indemnity schemes, managing primary care appeals and performers lists, issuing professional alerts, and promoting patient safety through advice and learning, alongside strategic aims focused on fair resolution, use of data and improvement of maternity and neonatal schemes. The framework defines the respective roles of DHSC, its principal accounting officer and sponsorship team in setting policy and performance expectations, approving plans and budgets, and monitoring risks and delivery, while assigning the chief executive, as accounting officer, responsibility for stewardship of public funds, operational management and reporting. It further details the duties of the board and chair in providing strategic oversight, ensuring effective governance, risk management and compliance with public sector standards, and sets requirements for delegated authorities, procurement, audit, counter-fraud, staffing, business planning, financial reporting and information sharing, with annexes specifying applicable guidance and the indemnity schemes administered by NHS Resolution.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has updated the collection titled 'Framework agreements between the Department of Health and Social Care and its arm’s length bodies' to include the framework agreement between itself and the Health Services Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB). The agreement sets out HSSIB’s core responsibilities, describes the governance and accountability framework that applies between the roles of DHSC and HSSIB and it sets out how the day-to-day relationship works in practice, including in relation to governance and financial matters. The agreement also covers matters such as business plans, financial reporting and management information, auditing and a review in two years’ time and winding-up arrangements if the HSSIB is to be wound-up.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published its response to the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee’s report on antimicrobial potential of bacteriophages published on 3 January 2024. The report considers how bacteriophages, or ‘phages’, have the potential to be used as an antimicrobial, either in conjunction with, or as an alternative to, antibiotics. In the government’s response to the report, it acknowledges the risk and threats of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) within the UK and the need to act on AMR to preserve the effectiveness of antimicrobials. Whilst the report’s recommendations focused on the health sector, the government’s response includes consideration of the potential for the use and regulation of phages in animals due to the government’s ‘One Health’ approach to tackling AMR.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published guidance on the application of the NHS injury costs recovery scheme for 2024 to 2025. The guidance is primarily designed for NHS trusts and NHS foundation trusts that offer treatment for injuries whose costs can be recovered from the NHS injury costs recovery scheme (ICR). It outlines the circumstances where costs are recoverable, along with the process under which this is undertaken, as well as advising on the recording of ICR payments in annual accounts.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published guidance following the UK Supreme Court's judgment on 2 June 2026 overruling P v Cheshire West and Chester Council [2014] UKSC 19. The judgment abolishes the 'acid test' for determining deprivation of liberty under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA 2005), replacing it with a multifactorial assessment considering factors including the type, duration, effects and manner of implementation of restrictions, and whether the person objects. The judgment also clarifies that persons lacking legal capacity under the MCA 2005 may give valid consent to care arrangements if they are conscious of their environment, have a basic level of understanding, and are capable of expressing a view that they accept the situation. The changes apply with immediate effect across the UK.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published new and updated guidance on discharging people from health care facilities. DHSC's updated guidance on 'hospital discharge and community support' sets out how people are to be safely discharged from a hospital to an appropriate place and how to ensure that people receive care after being discharged. The updated guidance elaborates on how NHS bodies and local authorities ought to agree on discharge models that meet needs and are effective and affordable. The updated guidance also specifies that NHS bodies and local authorities should ensure that unpaid carers and family members are involved in discharge decisions and contains specific guidance on good practice in the use of transfer hubs to manage the discharge of those with complex needs. Additionally, DHSC has published new guidance on discharging people at risk of, or experiencing, homelessness and on discharge from mental health inpatient settings. The guidance on discharging people at risk of or experiencing homelessness is aimed at staff members in care transfer hubs and staff involved in planning patient discharge and includes the NHS, local authority, housing and other partners. The guidance includes best practice examples and guides on discharging patients at risk of experiencing homelessness with safeguarding concerns or with no recourse to public funds. DHSC's guidance on discharging patients from mental health inpatient settings sets out how health and care systems are to work together to support the discharge of people from mental health and learning disability and autism inpatient settings for children, young people and adults. The guidance contains details on how budgets and responsibilities should be shared to pay for aftercare in terms of section 117 of the Mental Health Act 1983.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published guidance containing a framework of modifiable factors intended to promote good mental health in babies, children and young people. The guidance documents highlight the range of factors that interact to influence mental health, conveys opportunities to promote and minimise the risks to mental health and provides information on activities being taken across government that positively impacts mental health.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published guidance detailing the systems and processes employed by DHSC and NHS England to address medicine shortages. The guidance confirms that DHSC bears overall policy, strategic, and operational responsibility for ensuring the continuity of medicine supply for NHS services in England, while NHS England’s Medicines Procurement and Supply Chain team is responsible for managing secondary care medicines and certain homecare services. The document specifies the legal obligations of manufacturers to notify DHSC of any shortages or discontinuations through the designated discontinuations and shortages portal. It also outlines the assessment procedures, which involve collaboration with manufacturers, wholesalers, and partner organisations. Additionally, the guidance describes various communication mechanisms, including medicine supply notifications, the NHS medicines supply tool, serious shortage protocols published by the NHS Business Services Authority and national patient safety alerts issued through the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency central alerting system when appropriate criteria are met.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published guidance setting out expectations for how four major government-funded holders of human genomic data (HGD)—Genomics England, Our Future Health, UK Biobank and NIHR BioResource—must make HGD available to external users. Applying the Five Safes framework developed by the Office for National Statistics, the guidance requires HGD to be accessible only through secure data environments, with direct identifiers removed and UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) data minimisation principles observed. For international transfers to countries without UK adequacy regulations, holders must put in place appropriate safeguards under Article 46 of the UK GDPR and conduct a transfer risk assessment. HGD is characterised as a 'high harm risk' category of data transfer, with Five Eyes partnership listed as a positive indicator and non-ratification of the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention or Chemical Weapons Convention listed as negative indicators. Holders must also implement role-based risk assessments and insider risk mitigation programmes in accordance with National Protective Security Authority guidance. The guidance is to be reviewed at least every six months. The Health Research Authority (HRA) welcomed the guidance, noting it follows recent concerns relating to UK Biobank data.