GovS 013 component 12: Policies and registers for gifts and hospitality and COI

Have policies and registers for gifts and hospitality and conflicts of interest. GovS 013 ref: 5.8

Published: 27 February 2024

Version: 3.0

NHS Requirement 12

The organisation has a managing conflicts of interest policy and registers that includes reference to gifts and hospitality with reference to fraud, bribery and corruption, and the requirements of the Bribery Act 2010. Staff awareness of the requirements of the policy are tested sufficiently regularly to demonstrate effectiveness of the process.

Organisation meets the requirement

The organisation has a managing conflicts of interest policy and registers that include reference to gifts and hospitality that is proactively communicated to all staff.

The policy follows NHS England’s guidance ‘Managing Conflicts of Interest in the NHS’. The managing conflicts of interest policy and registers that include gifts and hospitality is implemented and is effectively managed.

The organisation measures levels of awareness of the managing conflicts of interest policy and registers that include gifts and hospitality among staff.

The results are used to determine where further awareness raising needs to be undertaken.

Note
The Bribery Act 2010 Section 7 – Failure of a commercial organisation to prevent bribery (corporate offence). An organisation may avoid conviction if it can show that it had procedures and protocols in place to prevent bribery. A GREEN rating from the NHSCFA is not in itself assurance that the organisation has adequate procedures and protocols in place in order to rely upon this defence.

Organisation partially meets the requirement

The organisation has a managing conflicts of interest policy and registers that includes reference to gifts and hospitality that is available to all staff and includes the appropriate references to fraud, bribery and corruption and the requirements of the Bribery Act 2010.

There is limited evidence of the organisation measuring awareness or knowledge of the requirements of the managing conflicts of interest policy and registers that include gifts and hospitality among staff.

There is no evidence that any results are used to determine where further awareness raising needs to be undertaken.

Organisation does not meet the requirement

The organisation does not have a managing conflicts of interest policy and registers that include gifts and hospitality or does not publicise it where one exists.

The policy does not follow NHS England’s guidance ‘Managing Conflicts of Interest in the NHS’.

There is no evidence that the managing conflicts of interest policy and registers that include gifts and hospitality is implemented.

Guidance, supporting documentation and evidence

Organisations should consider the following (the list is not exhaustive):

  • Bribery Act 2010
  • NHSCFA counter fraud manual Bribery Act Guidance
  • NHS England "Managing Conflicts of Interest in the NHS" Guidance for staff and organisations.
  • Organisational code of conduct
  • Gifts and hospitality policy and declarations
  • Constitution (for NHS foundation trusts)
  • Staff surveys and other evaluation materials
  • Code of conduct declarations
  • Standards of business conduct policy and declarations
  • Relevant clauses in staff contracts of employment
  • Publicity in relation to the code of conduct
  • Evidence of measures to evaluate awareness of the code of conduct among staff, and of changes made to increase it
  • NHS Standard Contract General Condition 27 - Conflicts of Interest and Transparency on Gifts and Hospitality
  • Ethical Standards for Providers of Public Services

Help us improve cfa.nhs.uk

Tell us what's happened so we can fix the problem. Please do not provide any personal, identifiable or sensitive information.

Close

Thanks for the feedback!

Close