National Patient Safety Plan for NHS Wales 2026-2031 (30 March 2026)

Summary

Published by NHS Wales Performance and Improvement, this plan is intended to guide and drive patient safety improvements throughout Wales over a five-year period. It aims to reduce avoidable harm and build a culture where learning and improvement are at the heart of everything the NHS does.

Content

Aim of the National Patient Safety Plan

Listening, leading and learning for safer care in Wales. This will be achieved through three foundational pillars which run consistently throughout and shape the direction of the Plan:

Listening

Listening goes beyond hearing — it amplifies the voices of patients, staff and partners to shape safer care and turn feedback into actionable insight. Embedding co-production ensures lived and learned experiences drive meaningful improvements. By focusing on prevention, tackling harm and inequalities early and creating transparent feedback loops, this approach builds trust, strengthens relationships and ensures the healthcare system reflects what matters most to the people it serves.

Leadership

Visible, accountable leadership makes patient safety a core strategic priority. Leaders create systems and cultures that foster transparency, learning and reliability, while empowering multi-disciplinary teams to identify risks, act quickly and prevent harm through continuous improvement.

Learning

Proactive, systematic use of real-time insights and data —coupled with collaborative reflection—to drive continuous redesign of healthcare systems, foster transparency and feedback and co-create improvements in safety. Incorporating a learning approach that not only detects errors and implements corrective actions but also embodies ongoing, collective and system-wide learning that embeds safety into everyday healthcare practice.

National Clinical Safety Priorities

The Plan sets out six strategic national clinical safety priorities for specific focus identified by healthcare organisations and Welsh Government:

• Acute physical deterioration
• Deconditioning in the community
• Health care associated infections
• Improving safety in secondary care mental health services
• People with learning disabilities and neurodivergence
• Maternity and neonatal services

Summary of the Plan