The National Care Standards Commission (Membership and Procedure) Regulations 2001

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the National Care Standards Commission (Membership and Procedure) Regulations 2001 and shall come into force on 9th April 2001.

(2) In these Regulations—

“the Act” means the Care Standards Act 2000;

“the 1977 Act” means the National Health Service Act 1977(1);

“chairman” means, unless the context otherwise requires, the chairman of the Commission;

“health professional” means a person who is registered as a member of any profession to which section 60(2) of the Health Act 1999(2) applies or who is a clinical psychologist, child psychotherapist or speech therapist;

“the health service” shall be construed in accordance with section 128(1) of the 1977 Act;

“health service body” means—

(a)

a Health Authority(3), Special Health Authority(4) or NHS trust(5) or a Primary Care Trust(6);

(b)

a Health Board or Special Health Board constituted under section 2 of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978(7); or the Scottish Dental Practice Board, the Common Services Agency for the Scottish Health Service or an NHS trust respectively constituted under sections 4, 10 and 12A of that Act;

(c)

the Dental Practice Board constituted under section 37(1) of the 1977 Act;

(d)

the Public Health Service Laboratory Board continued in being by section 5(4) and (5) of, and Schedule 3 to, the 1977 Act;

(e)

the National Radiological Protection Board established by section 1 of the Radiological Protection Act 1970(8);

“lay member” means a person who is not, and has not within 12 months of the date of appointment been, a social care worker or health professional or otherwise involved in the purchase (except as a private individual) or provision of social or health care services, or in the regulation (including inspection) of social or health care services (except where his involvement is or was as a lay member in relation to a body which regulates the provision of social or health care services.);

“member” in relation to the Commission includes the chairman.

(3) In these Regulations unless the context otherwise requires, any reference to a numbered regulation is a reference to the regulation bearing that number in these Regulations, and any reference in a regulation to a numbered paragraph is a reference to the paragraph bearing that number in the regulation.

Number of members

2.  The Commission shall have fifteen members, not less than eight of whom shall be lay members.

Appointment of members

3.—(1) Subject to regulation 7 (termination of tenure of office), the term of office of a member shall be such period, not exceeding four years, as the Secretary of State shall specify on making the appointment.

(2) Subject to regulation 5 (disqualification for appointment), a member shall, on termination of his office, be eligible for re-appointment.

Appointment of deputy-chairman

4.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the members may appoint one of the members, other than the chairman, to be deputy-chairman for such period, not exceeding the remainder of his term as a member, as they may specify on making the appointment.

(2) Any member so appointed may at any time resign from the office of deputy-chairman by giving notice in writing to the chairman.

(3) Where the chairman has died or has ceased to hold office, or where he is unable to perform his duties as chairman owing to illness, absence from England or any other cause—

(a) the notice required by paragraph (2) to be given to the chairman shall be given to the Secretary of State;

(b) references to the chairman in the Schedule to these Regulations shall, so long as there is no chairman available to perform his duties, be taken to include references to the deputy-chairman.

Disqualification for appointment

5.—(1) Subject to regulation 6 (cessation of disqualification), a person shall be disqualified for appointment as a member if—

(a) he has within the preceding five years been convicted in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man of any offence and has had passed on him a sentence of imprisonment (whether suspended or not) for a period of not less than three months without the option of a fine;

(b) he has been adjudged bankrupt or has made a composition or arrangement with his creditors and has not been discharged in respect of it;

(c) he has been dismissed, otherwise than by reason of redundancy, from any paid employment with a health service body, a local authority or any establishment or agency of a description specified in section 4(8)(a) or (9)(a) of the Act;

(d) he is a person whose tenure of office as the chairman or as a member or director of a health service body has been terminated on the grounds that—

(i) it was not in the interests of, or conducive to the good management of, the body that he should continue to hold office;

(ii) he failed, without reasonable cause, to attend any meeting of that body for a period of three months;

(e) he has had his name removed, by a direction under section 46 of the 1977 Act (or any provision in force in Scotland or Northern Ireland corresponding to that provision), from any list prepared under Part II of that Act, and has not subsequently had his name included in such a list;

(f) he is suspended as respects the provision of general medical services, general dental services, general ophthalmic services or pharmaceutical services under the 1977 Act by a direction of the Tribunal constituted under section 46 of that Act made pursuant to section 49A(2) or section 49B(1) of that Act(9) (or any provision in force in Scotland or Northern Ireland corresponding to those provisions);

(g) he has been removed, or is suspended, from a register of members admitted to practice maintained under any of the following Acts—

(i) the Pharmacy Act 1954(10);

(ii) the Professions Supplementary to Medicine Act 1960(11);

(iii) the Medical Act 1983(12);

(iv) the Dentists Act 1984(13);

(v) the Opticians Act 1989(14);

(vi) the Osteopaths Act 1993(15);

(vii) the Chiropractors Act 1994(16);

(viii) the Nurses, Midwives and Health Visitors Act 1997(17);

(h) he is included in any list maintained by the Secretary of State under section 1 of the Protection of Children Act 1999 (list of persons considered unsuitable to work with children) or section 81 of the Act (list of persons considered unsuitable to work with vulnerable adults); or

(i) he is an employee of the Commission.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(a), the date of conviction shall be deemed to be the date on which the ordinary period allowed for making an appeal or application with respect to the conviction expires or, if such an appeal or application is made, the date on which the appeal or application is finally disposed of or abandoned or fails by reason of its not being prosecuted.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(c), a person shall not be treated as having been in paid employment by reason only of his having been the chairman or member or director of a health service body.

Cessation of disqualification

6.—(1) Where a person is disqualified under regulation 5(1)(b) by reason of having been adjudged bankrupt—

(a) if the bankruptcy is annulled on the ground that he ought not to have been adjudged bankrupt or on the ground that his debts have been paid in full, the disqualification shall cease on the date of the annulment;

(b) if he is discharged, the disqualification shall cease on the date of his discharge.

(2) Where a person is disqualified under regulation 5(1)(b) by reason of his having made a composition or arrangement with his creditors—

(a) if he pays his debts in full, the disqualification shall cease on the date on which such payment is completed; and

(b) in any other case, it shall cease on the expiry of the period of five years beginning on the date on which the terms of the deed of composition or arrangement are fulfilled.

(3) Subject to paragraph (4), where a person is disqualified under regulation 5(1)(c) he may, after the expiry of two years beginning on the date on which he was dismissed, apply in writing to the Secretary of State to remove the disqualification, and the Secretary of State may direct that the disqualification shall cease.

(4) Where the Secretary of State refuses an application to remove a disqualification, no further application may be made by that person until the expiry of the period of two years beginning with the date of the application and this paragraph shall apply to any subsequent application.

(5) Where a person is disqualified under regulation 5(1)(d), the disqualification shall cease on the expiry of the period of two years beginning on the date of the termination of his tenure of office or such longer period as the Secretary of State specifies when terminating his period of office but the Secretary of State may, on application being made to him by that person, reduce the period of disqualification.

Termination of tenure of office

7.—(1) A member may resign his office at any time during his term of office, by giving notice in writing to the Secretary of State.

(2) Where during his term of office a member other than the chairman is appointed to be the chairman, his tenure of office as such a member shall terminate when his appointment as chairman takes effect.

(3) Where the Secretary of State is of the opinion that it is not in the interests of, or conducive to the good management of, the Commission that a member should continue to hold office, he may forthwith terminate his tenure by giving him notice in writing to that effect.

(4) If a member fails to attend any meeting of the Commission for a period of three months the Secretary of State shall forthwith terminate that person’s tenure of office, unless he is satisfied that—

(a) the absence was due to a reasonable cause; and

(b) the person in question will be able to attend meetings of the Commission within such period as the Secretary of State considers reasonable.

(5) Where a person has been appointed to be a member, and—

(a) he becomes disqualified for appointment under regulation 5, the Secretary of State shall forthwith notify him in writing of such disqualification; or

(b) it comes to the notice of the Secretary of State that at the time of his appointment he was so disqualified, he shall forthwith declare that the person in question was not duly appointed and notify him in writing to that effect, and upon receipt of any such notification, his tenure of office, if any, shall be terminated and he shall cease to act as such a member.

(6) If it appears to the Secretary of State that a member has failed to comply with regulation 10 (disability on account of pecuniary interest) he may forthwith terminate that person’s tenure of office by giving him notice in writing to that effect.

Appointment of committees and sub-committees

8.—(1) Subject to such directions as may be given by the Secretary of State, the Commission may, and if so directed by him must, appoint other committees of the Commission.

(2) A committee appointed under paragraph (1) may consist wholly or partly of members of the Commission or wholly of persons who are not members of the Commission.

(3) A committee appointed under paragraph (1), subject to such directions as may be given by the Secretary of State or the Commission, may appoint sub-committees consisting wholly or partly of members of the committee (whether or not they are members of the Commission) or wholly of persons who are not members of the Commission or the committee.

(4) Regulation 5, other than paragraph (1)(j), and regulation 6 apply to the appointment of members of committees and sub-committees appointed under this regulation as they apply to the appointment of members of the Commission.

Meetings and proceedings

9.—(1) The meetings and proceedings of the Commission shall be conducted in accordance with the rules set out in the Schedule to these Regulations and with Standing Orders made under paragraph (2).

(2) Subject to those rules, to regulation 10 (disability on account of pecuniary interest) and to such directions as may be given by the Secretary of State, the Commission shall make, and may vary or revoke, Standing Orders for the regulation of its proceedings and business, including provision for the suspension of the Standing Orders or any of them.

(3) Subject to such directions as may be given by the Secretary of State, the Commission may make, vary and revoke Standing Orders relating to the quorum, proceedings and place of meeting of any committee or sub-committee of the Commission but, subject to any such Standing Orders, the quorum, proceedings and place of meeting shall be such as the committee or sub-committee may determine.

(4) The proceedings of the Commission shall not be invalidated by any vacancy in its membership or by any defect in a member’s appointment.

Disability of members in proceedings on account of pecuniary interest

10.—(1) Subject to the following provisions of this regulation, if a member has any pecuniary interest, direct or indirect, in any matter and is present at any meeting of the Commission at which the matter is the subject of consideration, he shall at the meeting and as soon as practicable after its commencement, disclose his interest and shall not take part in the consideration or discussion of the matter or vote on any question with respect to it.

(2) The Secretary of State may, subject to such conditions as he may think fit to impose, remove any disability imposed by this regulation in any case in which it appears to him in the interests of the work of the Commission that the disability should be removed.

(3) The Commission may, by Standing Orders made under regulation 9(2), provide for the exclusion of a member from a meeting of the Commission while any matter in which he has a pecuniary interest, direct or indirect, is under consideration.

(4) Any remuneration, compensation or allowances payable to a member by virtue of paragraph 7 of Schedule 1 to the Act (remuneration and allowances) shall not be treated as a pecuniary interest for the purpose of this regulation.

(5) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (6), the circumstances in which a member shall be treated for the purpose of this regulation as having an indirect pecuniary interest in a matter include—

(a) if he, or a nominee of his, is a director of a company or other body, not being a public body, which has a direct pecuniary interest in the matter under consideration; or

(b) if he is a partner of, or is in the employment of, a person who has a direct pecuniary interest in the matter under consideration,

and in the case of married persons living together the interest of one spouse shall, if known to the other, be deemed for the purpose of this regulation to be also an interest of the other.

(6) A member shall not be treated as having a pecuniary interest in any matter by reason only—

(a) of his membership of a company or other body if he has no beneficial interest in any securities of that company or other body; or

(b) of an interest in any company, body or person with which he is connected as mentioned in paragraph (5) which is so remote or insignificant that it cannot reasonably be regarded as likely to influence him in the consideration or discussion of, or in voting on, any question with respect to that matter.

(7) Where a member—

(a) has an indirect pecuniary interest in a matter by reason only of a beneficial interest in securities of a company or other body;

(b) the total nominal value of those securities does not exceed £5,000 or one-hundredth of the total nominal value of the issued share capital of the company or body, whichever is the lesser; and

(c) if the share capital is of more than one class, the total nominal value of shares of any one class in which he has a beneficial interest does not exceed one-hundredth of the total issued share capital of that class,

this regulation shall not prohibit him from taking part in the consideration or discussion of the matter, or from voting on any question with respect to it, without prejudice however to his duty to disclose his interest.

(8) This regulation applies to a committee or sub-committee as it applies to the Commission and applies to a member of any such committee or sub-committee (whether or not he is also a member of the Commission) as it applies to a member of the Commission.

(9) In this regulation—

• “public body” includes any body established for the purpose of carrying on, under national ownership, any industry or part of any industry or undertaking, the governing body of any university, university college or college, school or hall of a university and the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty incorporated by the National Trust Act 1907(18);

• “securities” means—

  (a)

  shares or debentures, whether or not constituting a charge on the assets of a company or other body, or rights or interests in any share or such debentures; or

  (b)

  rights (whether actual or contingent) in respect of money lent to, or deposited with, any industrial or provident society or building society; and

• “shares” means shares in the share capital of a company or other body or the stock of a company or other body.

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Health

John Hutton

Minister of State,

Department of Health

18th March 2001