Adult Safeguarding

Every adult has a fundamental right to be safe and to live a life free from harm. Some adults, for a wide variety of reasons, may be at greater risk of experiencing harm from another person and may need additional measures, known as adult safeguarding, to protect themselves from harm.

Adult safeguarding means putting measures in place to promote and protect the safety, health, well-being and human rights of adults at risk, reduce their risk of harm, empower them to protect themselves and support them to live free from abuse, harm and neglect.

The Department of Health launched the first National Policy Framework for Adult Safeguarding in Health and Social Care Sector on 9 December 2025. This policy framework will apply to all health and social care services, whether provided by public, voluntary or private bodies.

The policy framework sets out how safeguarding will operate in the health and social care sector, including policy and legislative measures to expand and strengthen existing supports and protections in the sector.

Access the different formats of the National Policy Framework for Adult Safeguarding in the Health and Social Care Sector here.

Public consultation on policy proposals for adult safeguarding in the health and social care sector (2024)

The Department of Health held a public consultation on draft Policy Proposals on Adult Safeguarding in the Health and Social Care Sector between 31 January 2024 and 2 April 2024, to inform the draft policy proposals and to contribute to the development of the final policy. An Easy-To-Read summary of the proposals and Easy-To-Read survey format were also made available.

Access the draft policy proposals prepared for the public consultation.

The Institute of Public Health was commissioned to analyse the responses to the public consultation and to prepare a report to reflect and summarise the range of views expressed by respondents on the scope, content, and potential implementation of the draft policy proposals.

Policy Proposals on Adult Safeguarding - Public Consultation Report

Report on Adult Safeguarding Focus Groups with Health and Social Care Service Users (2021)

Policy on Adult Safeguarding in the Health Sector Stakeholder Workshop (2019)

The Steering Group was convened by the Department of Health, and first met in 2019, to assist in developing a national adult safeguarding policy for the health and social care sector.

More information about the Steering Group can be accessed here.

• HSE – Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults
• Moving Forward: Adult Safeguarding in the Health Service Executive
• HSE – Adult Safeguarding and Protection Teams
• HIQA and Mental Health Commission National Standards for Adult Safeguarding - Approved by Minister for Health
• Law Reform Commission: A Regulatory Framework for Adult Safeguarding