Source: Charity Commission published on this website Thursday 23 July 2026 by Jill Powell

The EHRC Code of Practice for services, public functions and associations will soon come into force, and have legal status, including for charities.

Charities are therefore advised to take steps towards ensuring they can comply with the Code and the law, notably the changes regarding the definition of sex under the Equality Act 2010 as relating to biological sex. Such steps might, depending on the nature of a charity’s work, include seeking legal advice. Meanwhile the Charity Commission is working at pace to update its Equality Act guidance for charities. It aims to publish this guidance during the Autumn.  

The guidance will provide further support to charities in understanding how the Equality Act, and the Code, affect them as charities.  For example, it will set out how the charities’ exception can apply to charities, and how charities might take positive action under the Act.

But charities need to be aware that our guidance will not alter the legal principle set out by the April 2025 Supreme Court judgment, For Women Scotland v Scottish Ministers,  that ‘sex’ for the purpose of the Equality Act means ‘biological sex’. 

Charities do not need to wait for the Commission’s guidance to comply with the Act and the Code. It is the responsibility of trustees to ensure their charity is compliant with the Code, once it is legally enforceable, and unreasonable delays in taking steps towards compliance may be considered a breach of those responsibilities.

Source: Office for Products, Safety and Standards published on this website Tuesday 21 July 2026 by Jill Powell

Government has told businesses they must not rely on final product testing alone to assure the absence of asbestos in toys. 

Following a growing number of product recalls due to asbestos contamination, the Government is reminding businesses that they must be able to demonstrate that toys containing sand are safe before they are placed on the UK market.  

Businesses should have robust supply chain assurance in place to demonstrate that products are free from asbestos contamination. Product testing may form part of that assurance, but testing alone is not sufficient.  

They should therefore review their supply chains, take any necessary action to address risks, and maintain evidence demonstrating that products are safe and free from asbestos contamination. 

OPSS Chief Executive, Graham Russell said:  

“Parents should be able to trust that the toys they buy for their children are safe. We know the recent recalls have caused concern, and that’s why we’re reminding businesses of their responsibility to understand and manage the risks in their supply chains.

“The Government will hold businesses to account for ensuring they have the right checks and controls in place and can demonstrate that the products they sell are safe.”

Where asbestos is identified in products, businesses should take immediate action to protect consumers, including product withdrawal or recall. 

Consumers can find out more information about products that have been recalled and access advice here: Asbestos in consumer products - GOV.UK 

Businesses can read the advisory note on Assuring the absence of asbestos in sand-containing toys.

Source: UK Parliament published on this website Wednesday 22 July 2026 by Jill Powell

Protections for whistleblowing and non-disclosure agreements

Whistleblowing law

The legal framework for whistleblowing protections is contained in Part 4A of the Employment Rights Act 1996, as amended by the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998. These protections apply across Great Britain, including England, Scotland and Wales. Employment law is devolved in Northern Ireland.

This framework protects workers who disclose information about malpractice at their workplace, or former workplace, provided certain conditions are met. The conditions concern the nature of the information disclosed and the person to whom it is disclosed. If these conditions are met, the act protects the worker from suffering detriment or dismissal due to having made the disclosure. If the conditions are not met a disclosure may constitute a breach of the worker’s duty of confidence to his employer.

These rights are enforceable through the employment tribunal system. The Library publishes a briefing on Making a claim to an employment tribunal.

Non-disclosure agreements

A “non-disclosure agreement” is a confidentiality clause in a contract, typically in a type of contract known as a “settlement agreement”. A settlement agreement is a contract concluded at the end an employment relationship that seeks to prevent future disputes, usually accompanied by a payment to the worker, who waives their entitlement to pursue any legal claims they may have against the employer. A non-disclosure agreement cannot prevent a worker from making a protected disclosure.

Recent reforms under the Employment Rights Act 2025

The Employment Rights Act 2025 made two significant changes regarding whistleblowing protections and the use of non-disclosure agreements in cases of sexual harassment:

• Section 23 of the Employment Rights Act 2025 amended section 43B of the Employment Rights Act 1996 so that information relating to sexual harassment qualifies as a “qualifying disclosure” for the purposes of whistleblowing protections, provided that the information is disclosed by a protected person using the correct legal procedure. Section 23 came into force on 7 April 2026.
• Section 24 of the Employment Rights Act 2025 inserted a new section into the Employment Rights Act 1996 which voids any provision in an agreement between an employer and a worker (such as a settlement agreement) that prevents the worker from speaking about relevant harassment or discrimination.

Section 24 is not yet in force. The government consulted on how the provisions in section 24 should be implemented between 15 April and 8 July 2026.

Whistleblowing in the NHS

NHS workers can get advice on whistleblowing from the freephone Speak Up Direct Helpline on 08000 724 725 or Speak Up website. They can also speak to their organisation’s Freedom to Speak up Guardian.

Support and advice

The Library briefing Legal advice and help in employment matters provides information on appropriate sources of professional legal advice relevant to whistleblowing law.

Protect

Protect is a charity which offers legal advice about whistleblowing. Protect has guidance on whistleblowing law for both workers and employers.

Protect also operates a confidential advice line, supervised by lawyers, which provides free advice on whistleblowing law and how best to raise whistleblowing concerns.

Acas

The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) has a series of guidance pages on whistleblowing at work, including guidance for workers on how to make a whistleblowing disclosure and for employers on responding to a whistleblowing disclosure and having a whistleblowing policy.

Acas also operates a confidential helpline of free advice on all aspects of employment law, including whistleblowing.

Source: Church of England published on this website Monday 20 July 2026 by Jill Powell

This independent review, commissioned from thirtyone:eight, examines the Church of England’s handling of case TT, focusing on the response to allegations of rape, sexual abuse and spiritual abuse by two clergy youth officers, together with the Church’s subsequent management of those disclosures and the National Safeguarding Team (NST) investigation undertaken between 2019 and 2022. The allegations were first reported in 2001 but relate to events which occurred from 1979 and 1992.

The review considers the involvement of, and the actions taken by, the Dioceses of Southwark, Oxford and Leeds in response to TT’s allegations and related matters. The review considered whether the Church’s actions were thorough, proportionate, just, and consistent with safeguarding best practice, particularly in relation to survivor-centred and trauma-informed approaches.

Key recommendations include embedding survivor-centred and trauma-informed practice throughout safeguarding processes, strengthening record keeping and communication standards, improving workforce stability and professional development, clarifying information-sharing arrangements, recognising spiritual abuse within safeguarding frameworks, establishing clearer routes to apology, accountability and redress, and implementing independent safeguarding scrutiny and oversight.

The review also notes examples of good practice, including the support provided by TT’s advocate, pastoral engagement and apologies from current diocesan leaders, and efforts by some individuals to pursue what they described as the “right moral response” beyond the limitations of formal safeguarding processes.

The review acknowledges that Dioceses and the NST have begun implementing changes that address some of the recommendations in this report.

Kevin Crompton was appointed as the ICIR in September 2023 with a remit to progress the case reviews promised by the former Independent Safeguarding Board (ISB) to a group of survivors referred to as the ‘ISB 11’.

The Church of England’s Lead Safeguarding Bishop, Bishop Robert Springett, and the National Director of Safeguarding, Alexander Kubeyinje, said in response to the review:

“We would like to pay tribute to TT for the courage, determination and perseverance she has shown in engaging with this review, which has looked at both when she originally reported in dioceses and then came to the National Safeguarding Team in 2019. We are deeply sorry for the abuse she reported, and for the profound impact it has had on her life. We are also sorry that her experience of Church safeguarding left her feeling unsupported and further traumatised.

“We welcome the publication of this review, which was commissioned following the Archbishops’ Council appointing Kevin Crompton to look at the work promised by the former Independent Safeguarding Board, ISB. It raises important issues about how the Church of England responds to survivors, and about trauma-informed practice, communication and accountability.

“As the National Safeguarding Team's independent audit (by INEQE) shows, the NST has undergone significant transformation in recent years and is now a professional national function focused on improving safeguarding practice across the Church of England. Key safeguarding standards inform all our work. We are aware that our approach now is different to when the NST started, but we are committed to learning from this review as we continue to improve safeguarding across the Church of England. The recommendations in the review will now be considered in detail and monitored via the Safeguarding Data Analysis, Research and Evaluation (DARE) Unit and the National Safeguarding Steering Group (NSSG).”

Download the report