COVID-19 Guidance
Information on this page aims provide a hub of information to support social workers with advice and guidance which has been issued by Government, regulators and health professionals.
Book or manage your coronavirus vaccination.
Covid 19 UK Government updates
Around the UK
- UK Covid-19 Inquiry. The independent public inquiry to examine the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK launched on 4th October 2022
- Guidance from Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England. Visit the Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England for latest updates.
- Welsh Government advice can be found here
- Public Health Agency (PHA) guidance is available for Northern Ireland here.
- Coronavirus in Scotland
Social Work England
See all the latest updates from Social Work England here.
Department for Education
See all the latest updates from DfE here.
The Department for Education coronavirus helpline is available to answer questions about COVID-19 relating to education and children’s social care. Staff, parents and young people can contact this helpline as follows:
Phone: 0800 046 8687
Opening hours: 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday and 10am to 4pm Saturday and Sunday. If you work in a school, please have your unique reference number (URN or UK PRN) available when calling the hotline.
Coronavirus Act
- Coronavirus (COVID-19): changes to the Care Act 2014. Published 31 March 2020. Department of Health and Social Care
Changes to the Care Act 2014 to help local authorities prioritise care and support during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
- The Coronavirus Bill: The Response from BASW. BASW'’s initials calls are set out - more to follow (20th March 2020)
- Coronavirus bill: what it will do. Measures contained in the fast-tracked coronavirus legislation and why they are needed to effectively manage the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in the UK.
BASW policy brief on The Adoption and Children (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2020. Published 24 April 2020
Local resilience forums: contact details. Contact details for local resilience forums in the UK, and information about what they do. Local resilience forums (LRFs) are multi-agency partnerships made up of representatives from local public services, including the emergency services, local authorities, the NHS, the Environment Agency and others. These agencies are known as Category 1 Responders, as defined by the Civil Contingencies Act.
COVID-19 RIDDOR Reporting Health and Safety Executive (HSE)
The Office of the Public Guardian
The Office of the Public Guardian holds a register of everyone who has a lasting or enduring power of attorney (LPA and EPA), or who has a deputy acting for them. Since the coronavirus outbreak, there have been many urgent requests to search the database for people who have lost mental capacity. OPG is working to respond quickly to these requests, with a process specifically for patients incapacitated by COVID-19. Follow this link to find out how to carry out a search of the register quickly: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/nhs-staff-searching-our-registers-of-attorneys-and-deputies
HM Treasury
Treasury cut taxes to reduce PPE costs. From 1 May 2020, PPE purchased by care homes, businesses, charities and individuals to protect against Covid-19 will be free from VAT for a three-month period.Published 30 April 2020
Ofstead
Ofsted: coronavirus (COVID-19) rolling update. Ofsted guidance and information relating to coronavirus (COVID-19) for schools, early years, children's social care and further education and skills providers.
NHS England
NHS England treatment decisions.
Useful resources
- COVID-19 updates for social work, Skills for Care.
- The provision of immediate, on demand access to British Sign Language (BSL) interpreters for communication with Deaf people in health settings free of charge during the current Coronavirus situation
- COVID 19 - National guidance for family court 19th March 2020
- National Network of Parent Carer Forums (NNPCF) - Input into Covid-19 Contingency Planning. Key issues that have been identified by the membership of National Network of Parent Carer Forums (NNPCF) to contribute towards planning for a significant outbreak of the COVID – 19 virus. It highlights key considerations, as well as makes recommendations to support parents and carers who are caring for children, young people and adults with disabilities.
- ACAS is sharing good practice and advice for employers here and have a helpline for advice: 0300 123 1100
Selection of guidance from Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England:
Visit the Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England for latest updates.
- Government launches new portal for care homes to arrange coronavirus testing. All care home staff and residents are now eligible for testing with priority for those in homes that look after the over-65s.Published 11 May 2020
- Coronavirus (COVID-19): health and wellbeing of the adult social care workforce. Advice for those working in adult social care on managing your mental health and how employers can take care of the wellbeing of their staff during the coronavirus outbreak.Published 11 May 2020
- Further expansion of access to coronavirus testing helps protect the most vulnerable. Anyone in England with coronavirus symptoms who either has to leave home to go to work or is aged 65 and over will now be able to get tested. Published 28 April 2020
- New guarantee on death in service benefits for frontline health and care staff during pandemic. The families of health and care workers on the frontline in England will benefit from a new life assurance scheme during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Published 27 April 2020
- COVID-19: providing unpaid care to adults with learning disabilities and autistic adults. Guidance for people who are providing unpaid care to adults with learning disabilities and autistic adults during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.Published 24 April 2020
- COVID-19: supporting adults with learning disabilities and autistic adults. Guidance for care staff who are supporting adults with learning disabilities and autistic adults during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Published 24 April 2020
- COVID-19: guidance for households with possible coronavirus infection. Stay at home guidance for households with possible coronavirus (COVID-19) infection - updated with easy read and various languages. Published 12 March 2020
- Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance for people receiving direct payments. Advice for people who buy care and support through a direct payment, as well as local authorities, clinical commissioning groups and those who provide care and support. Published 21 April 2020
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Coronavirus (COVID-19): hospital discharge service requirements. Sets out how health and care systems and providers should change their discharging arrangements and the provision of community support during the coronavirus situation. Published 19 March 2020
Collection - Coronavirus (COVID-19): social care guidance. Information for the social care sector on responding to the coronavirus pandemic. Published 15 April 2020
- Coronavirus (COVID-19): adult social care action plan. How the government will support the adult social care sector in England throughout the coronavirus outbreak. Published 15 April 2020
- COVID-19: guidance for commissioners and providers of services for people who use drugs or alcohol. Published 15 April 2020
- The Mental Capacity Act (2005) (MCA) and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) During the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic. Guidance for health and social care staff who are caring for, or treating, a person who lacks the relevant mental capacity. Published 9 April 2020.
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COVID-19: infection prevention and control (IPC). Guidance on infection prevention and control for COVID-19.Published 10 January 2020. Last updated 12 April 2020
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Supporting disabled people through the coronavirus outbreak. Published 31 March 2020
A joint statement from the Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work, the Minister for Care, and the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Children and Families. -
COVID-19: guidance on supporting children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing. Advice for parents and carers on looking after the mental health and wellbeing of children or young people during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.Published 29 March 2020
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Guidance for the public on the mental health and wellbeing aspects of coronavirus (COVID-19). Published 29 March 2020
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Coronavirus (COVID-19): letter from the Secretary of State to the social care workforce. Published 28 March 2020
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Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance on vulnerable children and young people
Published 22 March 2020 -
COVID-19: guidance on social distancing and for vulnerable people. Guidance on social distancing for everyone in the UK, including children, and protecting older people and vulnerable people. (PHE updated 23 March)
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Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance. Find guidance about coronavirus (COVID-19) for health professionals and other organisations. Published 3 March 2020
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COVID-19: ethical framework for adult social care. A framework to support the planning and organisation of adult social care during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Guidance on ethical considerations for local authorities and adult social care professionals planning their response to COVID-19. This guidance may be reviewed and updated as the outbreak develops and subsequent guidance may be issued to support its application. Published 19 March 2020
- COVID-19: guidance for social or community care and residential settings is available here. Guidance for social or community care and residential settings in providing advice about the novel coronavirus, COVID-19.
- Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance for health professionals and other organisations
- COVID-19: stay at home guidance
- Guidance for employers and businesses
- Read commonly asked questions about coronavirus (COVID-19) on Public Health England’s blog.
DHSC has also published a new data visualisation tool accessible here.