After the Dash review, the National Guardian’s Office will close on 30 June 2026 and NHS England will assume key duties from 1 July 2026, while providers take on greater responsibility for embedding Freedom to Speak Up
The publication released on 16 April 2026 explains a planned change across the health and care landscape following the Dash review. Under the new approach, the National Guardian’s Office will close on 30 June 2026, and from 1 July 2026 selected functions will be transferred to NHS England.
This shift redistributes operational tasks while requiring individual healthcare bodies to accept more direct accountability for local Freedom to Speak Up systems. By describing the revised roles, the document aims to help trusts, ICBs, and commissioners prepare for the handover and to clarify who will manage national services and who will manage local responsibilities.
What NHS England will be responsible for
Under the revised model, NHS England will keep a national presence to maintain continuity and consistency. Key activities include operating a national contact centre to manage general enquiries and triage specialist matters to the dedicated Freedom to Speak Up team, keeping the online platform that hosts the free guardian foundation training, and collecting national data about speaking-up activity.
The aim is to preserve central oversight for functions that benefit from scale while enabling local organisations to lead on embedding good practice. Throughout, Freedom to Speak Up remains the core programme designed to encourage safe, confidential reporting and learning across health services.
Training, enquiries and national insight
Specifically, NHS England will continue to provide and maintain the digital training environment for newly appointed guardians and will manage the national point of contact for queries. Routine collection of both quantitative and qualitative information will allow the body to produce national insight and to feed learning back to networks of guardians. In practice, that means aggregated data reporting, thematic analysis and distribution of findings to strengthen system-wide understanding. The organisation will also start a programme of policy review across sectors, beginning with primary care, to ensure guidance is updated and consistent with the new operating arrangements.
What trusts, ICBs and commissioners must deliver
The responsibility for ensuring visible, accessible local arrangements rests with each healthcare provider and commissioner. Organisations will need to publish accurate contact details for their named Freedom to Speak Up guardian, keep that information up to date, and make it readily available to staff and the public. For the year 2026/27, routine national data submissions will be required from trusts and ICBs only. Providers must also confirm that any guardian they appoint completes the mandatory foundation training before starting in post and that ongoing professional development is supported to maintain effective practice locally.
Guardian welfare and organisational support
Organisations must provide appropriate practical and emotional support to guardians. After the nationally sourced independent Employee Assistance Programme ends on 31 December 2026, local employers are expected to ensure suitable psychological support is available. The expectation is that employers will devise internal welfare arrangements and continue to prioritise guardian resilience, recognising the emotional demands of the role. In addition, organisations should develop clear local escalation routes and peer networks so guardians can access specialist advice when complex or high-risk concerns arise.
Data, policy review and next steps
Central collection of Freedom to Speak Up data will continue and will be used to identify themes and learning across the system, with insights shared routinely with guardian networks. NHS England’s policy review work will begin with primary care organisations and extend to other sectors as required. The change is intended to balance national coherence with local accountability: with the National Guardian’s Office closing on 30 June 2026, the operational handover commencing on 1 July 2026 aims to provide clarity while preserving mechanisms for support, training and system-wide learning. Organisations are advised to review the full publication dated 16 April 2026 and to prepare governance and support arrangements to meet these expectations.
