Codes of Practice
Here you can find our Codes of Practice, practical guidance to professions carrying out activities we regulate.
Post mortem
Guidance on contingency storage arrangements for the deceased
The HTA licensing standards on premises, facilities and equipment aim to ensure that there are appropriate facilities for the storage of bodies and human tissue.
PFE2(b): There is sufficient capacity for storage of bodies, organs, and tissue samples, which takes into account predicted peaks of activity.
PFE2(c): Storage for long-term storage of bodies and bariatric bodies is sufficient to meet needs.
Release of the wrong body incidents in the Post Mortem sector
Information and guidance for establishments relating to the release of the wrong body incidents.
Post Mortem HTA Reportable Incidents (HTARIs)
Guidance for professionals in licenced mortuaries on reporting incidents. (HTARIs).
This guidance explains what incidents need reporting, how to report them, and what follow-up actions are required
Qualifying relationships
For some purposes, including post mortem examinations, appropriate consent can be given by someone in a ‘qualifying relationship’ to the deceased immediately before their death. Please see further details in the Codes of Practice for each sector.
Those in a qualifying relationship to the deceased person are (highest first):
The more things change, the more they remain the same
Our Chief Executive Allan Marriott-Smith takes a look back over the last decade of the HTA.
I’m sure I’m not alone in the thinking that coming to the end of another decade has relatively few highlights. I can say for certain that in January 2020 I’m older, greyer and wrinklier than in 2010, and my knees have seen better days.
Organ donation: Lessons from Wales
On December 1 2015, Wales became the first country in the UK to implement a ‘soft opt-out’ system for organ donation. Earlier this year we learnt that this has significantly increased consent rates for deceased donation when compared with England. At the time of the law change consent rates in Wales were the lowest in the UK (less than 50%). Now they are the highest by some distance (77% compared with 67% for the rest of the UK).
Post mortem model consent forms
The HTA has produced a model consent form for professionals seeking consent for an adult or child's post mortem.
The God of Small Things...
Our Head of Communications Mat Silk explains how the little things can be so important when dealing with human tissue and remains.
Relevant material under the Human Tissue Act 2004
The definition of relevant material in the Act is:
Section 53: Relevant material: