Health, safety and wellbeing in care settings
This unit underpins the essential knowledge and skills required to maintain health, safety and wellbeing in care settings, ensuring that learners can identify and mitigate risks to themselves, individuals receiving care, and others. It covers legal and organisational responsibilities, risk assessment, infection control, safe moving and handling, hazardous substances, fire safety, security, and stress management, all of which are critical for delivering safe, person-centred care and complying with regulatory standards.
Assessment criteria
Topic Overview
The Highfield Level 2 Diploma in Care (RQF) is a foundational qualification for those starting or progressing in a care role within health and social care settings. It covers essential knowledge and skills for providing person-centred care, supporting individuals with their daily living activities, and understanding key principles such as safeguarding, communication, and equality. This diploma is designed to equip learners with the practical competencies needed to work effectively under supervision in settings like residential care homes, domiciliary care, or day services.
This qualification is structured around mandatory units that address core aspects of care work, including duty of care, handling information, and promoting health and wellbeing. Optional units allow learners to specialise in areas such as dementia care, end-of-life care, or supporting individuals with mental health needs. By completing this diploma, students demonstrate their commitment to high-quality care and their understanding of regulatory standards, including the Care Quality Commission (CQC) requirements in England. It also serves as a stepping stone to further study, such as the Level 3 Diploma in Adult Care.
Key Concepts
Core ideas you must understand for this topic
- →Person-centred care: Tailoring support to an individual's preferences, needs, and values, ensuring they are active partners in their own care.
- →Safeguarding: Protecting individuals from abuse, neglect, and harm, and knowing how to respond to concerns or disclosures.
- →Duty of care: A legal obligation to act in the best interest of individuals and avoid causing harm, balanced with the individual's right to make informed choices.
- →Communication: Using verbal and non-verbal methods effectively, including active listening and adapting communication to meet the needs of individuals with sensory loss or cognitive impairments.
- →Equality and inclusion: Ensuring everyone has equal access to care and support, respecting diversity, and challenging discrimination.
Learning Objectives
What you need to know and understand
- 1. Understand own responsibilities, and the responsibilities of others, relating to health and safety in the work setting2. Understand the use of risk assessments in relation to health and safety3. Understand procedures for responding to accidents and sudden illness4. Be able to reduce the spread of infection5. Be able to move and handle equipment and objects safely6. Know how to handle hazardous substances and materials7. Understand how to promote fire safety in the work setting8. Be able to implement security measures in the work setting9. Know how to manage own stress
Assessment Criteria
Key criteria assessors look for in your portfolio
- Award credit for accurately describing own roles and boundaries, and those of colleagues, in relation to health and safety policies and legislation (e.g., Health and Safety at Work Act, COSHH).
- Award credit for clearly explaining the risk assessment process, including hazard identification, risk evaluation, control measures, and the importance of dynamic assessment in daily practice.
- Award credit for demonstrating correct and prompt responses to simulated or real accidents/sudden illness, including calling for help, providing basic first aid within own limits, and accurate incident reporting.
- Award credit for consistently applying infection prevention and control measures, such as hand hygiene, use of PPE, safe disposal of waste, and maintaining a clean environment.
- Award credit for safely moving and handling objects and/or individuals using correct techniques, equipment, and risk assessment, avoiding manual handling pitfalls.
- Award credit for correctly identifying hazardous substances via COSHH symbols and safety data sheets, and following safe storage, use, and disposal procedures.
- Award credit for explaining fire safety procedures, including prevention measures, evacuation plans, use of fire extinguishers, and personal evacuation strategies for individuals with reduced mobility.
- Award credit for implementing security measures appropriate to the setting, such as visitor signing-in, key control, alarm systems, and safeguarding against intruders or wandering.
- Award credit for recognising personal stress indicators and applying effective coping strategies, including seeking support when needed.
Assessment Guidance
Guidance for achieving higher grades
- 💡When answering questions on responsibilities, explicitly reference relevant legislation, organisational policies, and your job description to show clear application.
- 💡In risk assessment scenarios, always follow the hierarchy of control: eliminate, reduce, isolate, control, PPE, discipline.
- 💡For accident responses, structure your answer with DRSABC (Danger, Response, Shout, Airway, Breathing, Circulation) if first aid is required, and always mention recording and reporting.
- 💡Infection control answers should demonstrate understanding of the chain of infection and how specific measures break links in that chain.
- 💡For moving and handling, explain the role of biomechanics, team handling, and communication, not just the physical technique.
- 💡Hazardous substance answers must link to COSHH and include the nine pictograms and what they represent.
- 💡Fire safety responses should cover prevention, detection, containment, and evacuation, emphasising the importance of personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPs).
- 💡Security measures: always consider the balance between safety and dignity, and mention the Prevent duty where relevant.
- 💡Stress management: describe both internal (mindfulness, time management) and external support (supervision, counselling) methods.
- 💡Use specific examples from your work placement or case studies to illustrate your understanding of key principles, such as how you implemented person-centred care in a real scenario.
- 💡When answering questions about legislation, always link it to practice. For example, explain how the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 influences your daily tasks like moving and handling.
- 💡Pay attention to command words in questions: 'describe' requires detail, 'explain' needs reasons, and 'evaluate' asks for strengths and weaknesses. Structure your answers accordingly.
Common Mistakes
Common errors to avoid in your coursework
- Confusing individual responsibilities with those of managers or others; learners may assume all health and safety tasks fall to them rather than working within defined role boundaries.
- Treating risk assessments as static documents rather than dynamic ongoing processes; failing to reassess when conditions or individuals' needs change.
- Assuming that calling an ambulance is always the immediate priority before providing basic first aid or making the area safe.
- Overlooking hand hygiene after glove removal or not performing it at key moments, assuming gloves alone provide full protection.
- Incorrect manual handling posture, such as bending at the waist instead of the knees, which could cause personal injury.
- Failing to check labels or safety data sheets before using chemicals, leading to misuse or dangerous mixing of substances.
- Thinking fire doors should be propped open for convenience, compromising compartmentalisation and safety.
- Assuming security is solely the responsibility of a designated security officer, rather than understanding that all staff must be vigilant.
- Ignoring own stress until it becomes unmanageable, or using unhealthy coping mechanisms like ignoring the problem.
- Misconception: 'Person-centred care means doing whatever the individual wants.' Correction: It means involving the individual in decisions about their care while considering their safety, well-being, and professional boundaries.
- Misconception: 'Confidentiality is absolute and cannot be broken.' Correction: Confidentiality can be breached if there is a risk of harm to the individual or others, or if required by law (e.g., safeguarding concerns).
- Misconception: 'Duty of care always overrides an individual's choices.' Correction: Duty of care must be balanced with the individual's right to make informed decisions, even if those decisions involve risk, as long as they have capacity.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions students ask about this topic
Pass / Merit / Distinction Evidence Checklist
How your portfolio evidence is graded for HIGHFIELD QUALIFICATIONS Health, safety and wellbeing in care settings
Every vocational unit is marked against named criteria rather than an exam percentage. Your tutor's brief lists the exact codes for this unit — here is what each band is asking you to do.
Demonstrate baseline knowledge, accurate terminology, and core practical application.
Provide detailed analysis, structured explanations, and clear workplace reasoning.
Deliver thorough evaluation, original problem solving, and fully justified recommendations.
Before You Start
Prior knowledge that will help with this topic
- •A basic understanding of health and social care values, such as those covered in the Care Certificate.
- •Familiarity with key legislation like the Care Act 2014 and the Mental Capacity Act 2005.
- •Completion of mandatory training in safeguarding and basic life support (often provided by employers).
Coursework AI Review
Paste your assignment brief and check your draft against its P/M/D criteria
Key Terminology
Essential terms to know
- 1. Understand own responsibilities, and the responsibilities of others, relating to health and safety in the work setting2. Understand the use of risk assessments in relation to health and safety3. Understand procedures for responding to accidents and sudden illness4. Be able to reduce the spread of infection5. Be able to move and handle equipment and objects safely6. Know how to handle hazardous substances and materials7. Understand how to promote fire safety in the work setting8. Be able to implement security measures in the work setting9. Know how to manage own stress
Ready to learn?
AI-powered learning tailored to this unit