News
Taking a fresh approach to understanding confidentiality
We’ve taken a fresh approach to understanding confidentiality by working closely with carers, families and colleagues to co-produce new guidance that reflects real experiences and everyday challenges.
Confidentiality is a complex and sensitive area, particularly in mental healthcare, where carers often play a vital role in supporting someone’s recovery.
While policies are regularly reviewed to keep them up to date with legislation and terminology, colleagues recognised that written guidance alone does not always reflect the realities faced by carers or the challenges experienced in practice.
To address this, we worked with carers’ groups and staff across services to explore what confidentiality means to them. Through open discussions, carers shared experiences of feeling unheard or unsure about what information could be shared, while staff reflected on navigating confidentiality while providing the best possible care.
Janice Williamson, Carer and Families Support Network Lead at Oxleas, said:
Our hope is that this approach will lead to better communication, stronger partnerships with carers and improved outcomes for service users. "While confidentiality will always involve careful judgement, creating space for open discussion is a positive step towards more person-centred care.
At the heart of the work was co-production, recognising carers as partners and collaborators. By listening carefully to their experiences, we gained a clearer understanding of where confusion or inconsistency can arise and how guidance could be more helpful.
Participants highlighted the importance of respect and trust, especially when sensitive personal information is involved. For many carers, confidentiality is not just about rules but about relationships and reassurance that information is handled thoughtfully. Staff reflected that clearer shared understanding can support more confident and compassionate conversations.
The work also explored the ‘triangle of care’, where information flows between service users, carers and staff. Each may hold different information and expectations, making confidentiality more complex but also more important to manage well.
As a result, we have developed clearer advice and a practical confidentiality handbook for carers and staff. This aims to support conversations and help everyone feel more confident about what can be shared and when.
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