This week, our CEO Sanchita delivered a human rights leadership session as part of an NDTi programme for leaders in social care. We had a particular focus on the duties in the Human Rights Act (HRA) and how these work across public service delivery, policy and decisions, alongside the duty to also apply other laws consistently with people's human rights. We discussed how leaders can harness these duties for positive change and the importance of being explicit about human rights.

Leaders reflected on how using the HRA legal framework can help ensure values are not merely assumed but are genuinely at the heart of social care, supporting both people drawing on care and staff. After the session participants shared how it was "insightful, knowledgeable and will challenge your own thinking and practices" and "reinforces that human rights law is meant to protect and preserve wellbeing not a means to making resource driven decision."

Find out more about our human rights learning and practice support for public services here, or email us directly on training@bihr.org.uk 

The JCHR published an Easy Read version of its Mental Health Bill report

The Mental Health Bill is currently going through Parliament and is due to start Committee stage in the House of Commons next week. This is where MPs will go through the Bill line-by-line and keep, change or get rid of each bit.

Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights recently looked at the human rights implications of the Bill and wrote a report on its findings. The report included evidence from BIHR’s RITES Committee of Lived Experience Experts. You can read more about our work on the Bill here.

The JCHR has now published the Easy Read version of its report, which you can read here.

Age UK London published a report on the impact of financial pressures on older Londoners

On the Edge: The impact of financial pressures on older Londoners is a new report from Age UK that “look[s] at everyday experiences and reveals how growing economic hardship is deeply affecting older Londoners' wellbeing, leaving many anxious, losing sleep, isolated, and unable to afford essentials.”

The report found that 25% of Londoners over the age of 80 are living in poverty. Age UK London are calling on government to respond to the findings, suggesting “simplified benefit applications, stronger rent protections, and improved mental health support”.

Read the report

Watch our RITES Committee’s videos on human rights and the cost-of-living crisis