The Human Rights Action Plan

Steps we can all take every day to champion a human rights culture across the UK. 

Sign up Download the Plan as a PDF Get the poster Get the Easy Read version

What is the Human Rights Action Plan?

The Human Rights Act protects everybody in the UK, and the rights contained in the Act belong to us all. Public body workers and policymakers have a legal duty to respect, protect and fulfil human rights wherever possible, while individuals and community groups can use the Human Rights Act to advocate for themselves, their loved ones and the people they support. 

The British Institute of Human Rights and the RITES Committee invite everybody – whether they’re an individual, community group member, public body worker or policymaker – to sign up to the Human Rights Action Plan and take everyday actions to help make human rights real across the UK.

The Action Plan sets out some of the steps you can take to get you started but we encourage you to think about the other ways you can promote human rights and what would make the biggest difference to you and those around you.

Throughout the Action Plan, we use the term human rights as shorthand to mean the 16 human rights that belong to everyone in the UK under the Human Rights Act, and the legal duties it sets out on public bodies to respect, protect and fulfil these protections. 

The Human Rights Action Plan is not a certificate or a seal of approval from the British Institute of Human Rights but an ongoing commitment from signatories to take tangible steps in their everyday lives and/or work to support a culture of respect for human rights across the UK. 

The Actions

As an individual, I will...

  1. Having a conversation around the dinner table 

  2. Learning about what human rights I have and how they are protected in our law here in the UK 

  3. Speaking up or finding support to speak up when my human rights are at risk 

  4. Supporting others to challenge decisions or actions that put their human rights at risk 

  5. Sharing examples of people using the Human Rights Act to achieve positive change 
     

  1. Using the BIHR and RITES Committee social media pack

  2. Sharing information about our human rights protections in the UK.  

  3. Getting involved with online campaigns to support and raise awareness of human rights in the UK 

  4. Posting about Human Rights Day in December 

  5. Sharing examples of people using the Human Rights Act to achieve positive change 

As a community member, I will...

  1. Sharing the Easy Read postcards created by BIHR and Warrington Speak Up and other Easy Read and plain-language information

  2. Putting Human Rights Act resources and posters in meeting spaces or community centres 

  3. Hosting networking events talking about human rights and how they are for everyone

  4. Holding a tea-and-talk session where people can drop in and find out more about their human rights protected in UK law 

  5. Pointing out when it sounds like somebody’s human rights aren’t being respected and supporting them to raise the issue with public body workers

  1. Creating an online community where people can come together, support each other and share challenges and achievements related to human rights protections in the UK 

  2. Making sure people who are digitally excluded are still able to access information about their human rights by making it available in the community such as in shared spaces and at local events
     
  3. Bringing up human rights at networking events to spread awareness to other community groups and organisations as well as individuals
     
  4. Arranging a human rights workshop or drop-in session for community members who can attend and ask questions about their legally protected human rights and how to claim them 

  5. Asking for space to speak at pre-arranged events to share information about human rights protections in places where they may not be thought about

As a public body worker, I will...

  1. Thinking about human rights when making decisions or taking any action  

  2. Adding a “human rights” section to checklists and/or asking if new policies have been considered from a human rights perspective 

  3. Advocating for practical human rights training for my team to understand and implement our legal duties to uphold people’s human rights 

  4. Questioning blanket bans or blanket policies as these often aren’t human rights-respecting 

  5. Challenging human rights-risking decisions when I come across them 

  1. Identifying groups that may be less likely to know about their human rights and making information readily available to them in an accessible format 

  2. Making colleagues aware of their human rights and the duties owed to them by public body employers 

  3. Supporting people practically to challenge and change human rights-risking decisions by ensuring they know who to speak to and how 

  4. Arranging a lunchtime learning session for colleagues to share my knowledge of human rights protections and/or sharing examples of good practice in upholding people’s human rights 

  5. Requesting practical human rights training for my team to understand and implement our legal duties to uphold people’s human rights

  1. Providing information about services in a variety of formats 
     
  2. Ensuring that people are made aware of and supported to attend any meetings discussing their care and support and any other services they are receiving 

  3. Checking that people accessing services know they can choose whether to have supporters and/or loved ones present at meetings and/or kept informed about their support 

  4. Making sure complaints processes and means of challenge are clear and accessible 

  5. Making sure an individual is included in decisions about their support and that proper consideration is given to their ideas and preferences

As a policymaker, I will...

  1. Introducing mandatory human rights training for staff in public bodies across the UK, so they know how to practically respect, protect and fulfil people’s legally protected human rights 

  2. Creating or supporting free human rights learning sessions for public officials and members of the general public
     
  3. Making human rights resources widely available for staff members and people accessing services 

  4. Ensuring information about human rights is available in a variety of formats to increase accessibility 

  5. Taking proactive steps to share examples of people using the Human Rights Act in real life

  1. Considering human rights when writing or reviewing all policies and making sure there is a record of this 

  2. Committing to completing informed and meaningful human rights impact assessments of decisions and policies
     
  3. Implementing clear and accessible complaints processes for people accessing services and those supporting them when human rights are at risk 

  4. Having dedicated Practice Leads to support colleagues with thinking about and implementing human rights in practice 

  5. Ensuring that people accessing services are involved in conversations about changes and policies that will impact them

  1. Providing information about services in a variety of formats 
     
  2. Ensuring that people are made aware of and supported to attend any meetings discussing their care and support and any other services they are receiving 

  3. Checking that people accessing services know they can choose whether to have supporters and/or loved ones present at meetings and/or kept informed about their support 

  4. Making sure complaints processes and means of challenge are clear and accessible 

  5. Making sure an individual is included in decisions about their support and that proper consideration is given to their ideas and preferences

What happens now?

You can sign up to the Human Rights Action Plan by filling out the form below.

We are currently working on an Easy Read version of the Plan which will be ready to share soon. You can fill out the form below to get notified when the Easy Read version is ready.

We recommend that organisations that sign up to the Human Rights Action Plan have a named staff member leading on it. The Human Rights Action Plan lead can support colleagues to put the actions in motion and act as the first point of contact for people accessing services who want to ask about the Action Plan or raise human rights concerns.

Everyone who signs up to the Human Rights Action Plan is added to our mailing list, which we'll use to send updates, ideas and inspiration. We'd love to hear your stories of putting the Human Rights Action Plan into action and to share these with other signatories. Get in touch on info@bihr.org.uk or tag @BIHRHumanRights and #HumanRightsActionPlan on social media.

We've also created a Human Rights Action Plan poster which we'd encourage you to put up in services, community centres and other shared spaces. This can help others find out about the Human Rights Action Plan and get involved too.

Sign up to the Human Rights Action Plan Download the Plan as a PDF Get the Easy Read version Get the poster

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