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Responses > Restorative Justice in Sexual Safety and Patient Complaints

Freedom of Information request Restorative Justice in Sexual Safety and Patient Complaints

Response published: 19 August 2025
Serious Incidents

FOI Request

1. NHS Sexual Safety in Healthcare Charter a) Has your Trust signed up to the NHS England Sexual Safety in Healthcare Charter (2023)? b) If yes: o Please confirm the date of adoption o Provide any internal implementation plans, policy updates, or cultural change programmes associated with the Charter c) Does your Trust interpret the Charter’s emphasis on person-centred and trauma-informed approaches as including or supporting the use of restorative practices? 2. Restorative Practices in Complaint Resolution a) Does your Trust use dialogue-based or restorative approaches in patient complaints more generally (e.g., apology meetings, mediation, facilitated dialogue)? b) If yes, please describe the approach and provide any supporting documents. 3. Use of Restorative Justice or Restorative Practice a) Has your Trust ever used restorative justice or restorative practices in the context of: o Sexual harassment, assault, or misconduct involving staff or patients? o Patient complaints involving interpersonal harm or conflict? b) If yes to either, please provide: o A brief description of the approach used o Any relevant policies, procedures, or internal guidance o Any staff training materials relating to restorative practice o Any available summary evaluations or outcome reports without any identifying details included.

FOI Response

Freedom of Information Request – Ref: 120-2025

Thank you for your recent Freedom of Information request. Please find our response below.

You asked:

1. NHS Sexual Safety in Healthcare Charter

a) Has your Trust signed up to the NHS England Sexual Safety in Healthcare Charter (2023)? If yes, please confirm the date of adoption

Our response:

Yes, in 2023

You asked:

b) Provide any internal implementation plans, policy updates, or cultural change programmes associated with the Charter

Our response:

Please see the link below:

Sexual Safety – Action Planning

You asked:

c) Does your Trust interpret the Charter’s emphasis on person-centred and trauma-informed approaches as including or supporting the use of restorative practices?

Our response:

Yes, in developing our local Sexual Safety policy there have been process mapping sessions with multiple teams and experts. The Trust has trained two cohorts of staff and is adopting Restorative Just and Learning Culture principles through its Human Resources practices and its Leadership and Culture Programme.

You asked:

2. Restorative Practices in Complaint Resolution

a) Does your Trust use dialogue-based or restorative approaches in patient complaints more generally (e.g., apology meetings, mediation, facilitated dialogue)?

Our response:

Yes

You asked:

b) If yes, please describe the approach and provide any supporting documents

Our response:

We have embedded the NHS complaint standards, which welcome complaints in a positive way. Please see the link below:

Complaint Standards | Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO)

Our policy highlights our ambition to resolve all complaints locally wherever possible.

Please see our policy on the link below:

PCET Complaints Policy

You asked:

3. Use of Restorative Justice or Restorative Practice

a) Has your Trust ever used restorative justice or restorative practices in the context of:

Sexual harassment, assault, or misconduct involving staff or patients?

Patient complaints involving interpersonal harm or conflict?

Our response:

Yes

You asked:

b) If yes to either, please provide:

A brief description of the approach used

Any relevant policies, procedures, or internal guidance

Any staff training materials relating to restorative practice

Any available summary evaluations or outcome reports without any identifying details included

Our response:

We use the principles of Restorative and Just Learning Culture for all our complaints and all feedback is managed in line with the Trust policy/NHS complaint standards.

We welcome complaints in a positive way as an opportunity for learning.  Agreeing the issues for investigation with the complainant and getting the views of everyone involved through the process.  We are transparent about what went wrong and open about the learning identified, apologising appropriately.  We do not write reports, instead we write to the complainant to explain our findings and acknowledge the impact their experience has had on them.  We would be unable to share the details of these letters, which include confidential health information.

Our Trust values underpin our approach to this process and to every contact we have with patients, carers and colleagues.

If there has been significant harm, we would consider whether the issues should be addressed under the Patient Safety Framework and forward the complaint to them to pick up through their own processes.

Next steps:

Should you have any queries in relation to our response, please do not hesitate to contact us. If you are unhappy with the response you have received in relation to your request and wish to ask us to review our response, you should write to:

Louise Moss
Head of Legal Services / Associate Director of Corporate Governance
c/o Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust
Edward Jenner Court
1010 Pioneer Avenue
Gloucester Business Park
Brockworth, GL3 4AW
E-mail: louise.moss@ghc.nhs.uk

If you are not content with the outcome of any review, you may apply directly to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) for further advice/guidance. Generally, the ICO will not consider your case unless you have exhausted your enquiries with the Trust which should include considering the use of the Trust’s formal complaints procedure. The ICO can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.