SCIE Practice guide 09: Dignity in care

Promoting dignity within the law: Relevant articles in the Convention of the Human Rights Act

Introduction

All the articles of the Convention covered in the HRA may relate to people who use services and their carers in certain circumstances, and practitioners should be aware of them. Those highlighted here are of particular relevance: click on them for further explanation, practice points and practice examples.

• Article 2 establishes a right to life
• Article 3 is the right not to be subjected to torture, inhuman or degrading treatment
• Article 5 provides a right to liberty and security
• Article 6 ensures the right to a fair trial and to innocence until proved guilty
• Article 8 provides the right to respect for private and family life, for home and for correspondence
• Article 10 provides the right to freedom of expression
• Article 14 prohibits discrimination in the ‘enjoyment’ of Convention rights

Further information

For further discussion of these articles see the Department for Constitutional Affairs study guide.

The full text of the Convention rights included within the Human Rights Act, can be found on the Office of Public Sector Information website.

Five training packs for frontline workers are available on the Department of Health website.

There is very useful guidance to the Act in SCIE’s e-learning resources on Law and social work.

Next: Article 2: a right to life
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