Cleanliness Champions implementation
Vale of Leven Inquiry · The Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry Report · Issued 24 November 2014 · Addressed to: NHS Health Boards (Scotland)
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
Health Boards should ensure that programmes designed to improve staff knowledge of good infection prevention and control practice, such as Cleanliness Champions Programme, are implemented without undue delay.
Vale of Leven Inquiry, The Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry Report · 24 Nov 2014 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- The Scottish Government's response confirmed that the HAI Taskforce delivery plan included education and training frameworks to ensure programmes such as Cleanliness Champions are implemented without delay. The Cleanliness Champions Programme, introduced in September 2003, has been completed by over 18,000 NHS Scotland staff.
- NHS Education for Scotland (NES) provides national education programmes for IPC, including specialist training for Infection Control Nurses and Doctors, mandatory induction training for all healthcare workers, and continuing professional development resources.
- The HCAI Strategy 2023-2025 includes workforce education as a priority, with ARHAI Scotland supporting training and competency development across NHS boards (Scottish HCAI Strategy 2023-2025 (https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-healthcare-associated-infection-hcai-strategy-2023-2025/)).
- Regulatory bodies (NMC, GMC) require continuing professional development as a condition of registration, reinforced through revalidation processes.
Response — verbatim from government
●Scottish Government
Section 4.3 of the Scottish Government's response confirms that the Cleanliness Champions Programme was introduced in September 2003, with over 18,000 NHS Scotland staff having completed it. The program aims to prepare staff to promote and maintain a healthcare culture where patient safety related to infection prevention and control is paramount. The HAI Taskforce also supports the extension of this program to a wider range of healthcare staff and has a strategy to ensure all healthcare workers receive appropriate HAI-related education and training.
Scottish Government · 18 Jun 2015 Written response →
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
- 1 Jan 2025 · NHS Education for Scotland Cleanliness Champions Programme trained over 18000 healthcare workers. Now integrated into the Scottish Infection Prevention and Control Education Pathway (SIPCEP) providing a staged pathway of IPC education via the Turas Learn platform. View source → Confirmed Completed
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.