Reporting, Record Keeping and Information Governance

Reporting, record keeping and information governance training delivered at your workplace or remotely. Half a day or a full day. What good documentation actually looks like in practice, and the data protection responsibilities every member of staff carries when they write a record.

Course Overview

When something goes wrong in a business, the first question isn’t what happened. It’s what was written down. Poor records don’t just cause admin headaches; they create legal exposure, compliance failures, and a paper trail that works against you rather than for you. It’s not only about what’s missing, either. Records that are vague, inconsistent, or factually wrong can be just as damaging as records that don’t exist at all.

This course is built for staff who need to understand what good documentation actually looks like in practice, not just in theory: what to record, how to record it, what to leave out, and why any of it matters. It also covers information governance, including how personal and sensitive data should be handled, stored, and shared safely under UK law.

Training aligns with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, RIDDOR 2013, and guidance from the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Course Details

  • Duration: Half day or full day, depending on the depth required
  • Delivery: Face-to-face in-house, or remote via Zoom or Microsoft Teams
  • Certificate: CPD-Accredited Certificate of Achievement in Reporting, Record Keeping and Information Governance
  • Awarding organisations: CPD-Accredited
  • Validity: No fixed legal renewal period. Refresher recommended annually or in line with organisational policy.
  • Group size: Maximum 15 learners per trainer

Who This Course Is For

This course is right for anyone who creates, contributes to, or manages records as part of their role, in any sector.

  • Office-based and administrative staff
  • Supervisors and team leaders
  • Managers with oversight responsibilities
  • HR teams
  • Customer-facing staff
  • Compliance and operations roles

It’s particularly relevant for staff who complete reports or records as part of their day-to-day role, handle personal or sensitive information, are responsible for compliance or oversight, or contribute to incident reporting or internal communication. If your organisation works specifically within health and social care, our Reporting, Record Keeping and Information Governance in Care course covers the same principles in a care-specific context, including Care Certificate Standard 14.

Why This Training Matters

Poor record-keeping is not just an admin issue. It creates real, measurable risk. Unclear or inaccurate records can lead to miscommunication between teams and departments, poor or uninformed decision-making, compliance failures with regulatory bodies, data breaches and the penalties that follow, and legal or reputational risk if things go to court or tribunal.

The legal framework is clear. Under the UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018, organisations must ensure personal data is processed lawfully and transparently, stored securely, accurate and kept up to date, and only shared where there’s an appropriate basis to do so. Beyond data protection, sector-specific record-keeping obligations sit alongside health and safety legislation. Under RIDDOR 2013, employers must keep records of reportable injuries, diseases, and dangerous occurrences. The HSE expects organisations to demonstrate compliance through documented evidence, and inspectors have the legal right to request records at any time. If the records aren’t there, the assumption is that the work wasn’t done.

This course helps staff understand both sides of the responsibility: recording information properly and protecting that information appropriately.

What the Day Covers

All content reflects the UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018 and current ICO and HSE guidance throughout. Topics covered include:

  • The role of documentation in organisations
  • Principles of good record keeping
  • Factual and objective reporting
  • Incident reporting and internal communication
  • Information governance and confidentiality
  • UK GDPR and data protection principles
  • Secure storage and handling of information
  • Sharing information appropriately and lawfully
  • RIDDOR 2013 and sector-specific recording obligations
  • Legal and regulatory context
  • Common documentation errors and how to avoid them

Every course is also built around your internal reporting systems and documentation formats as standard.

How the Course Is Delivered

Training is delivered face-to-face at your workplace or chosen venue, or remotely via Zoom or Microsoft Teams. Sessions include real-life examples of documentation done well and done badly, discussion of common workplace scenarios and the consequences when things go wrong, scenario-based learning grounded in actual business practice, and time to reflect on and review current documentation habits within your team.

Groups are capped at 15. Where it’s useful, we incorporate your internal reporting systems and formats, your policies and procedures, and compliance requirements specific to your sector, drawing on real examples from within your organisation. That’s not an add-on. It’s how we make training stick rather than gather dust.

General Business Training or the Care Sector Version?

Reporting, Record Keeping and Information Governance (this course): Covers the same core principles of good documentation and data protection, written for general business, office, and operational settings. Right for organisations outside health and social care, or for mixed teams where most staff aren’t working directly in care delivery.

Reporting, Record Keeping and Information Governance in Care: Covers the same legal and documentation principles, built specifically around CQC Regulation 17, Care Certificate Standard 14, and the realities of care planning, incident reporting, and safeguarding documentation. Right for care homes, domiciliary care providers, and supported living services.

Both courses cover the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 in full. The difference is context and regulatory framing, not depth.

Certification and Validity

Learners receive a CPD-Accredited Certificate of Achievement in Reporting, Record Keeping and Information Governance on completion.

There is no fixed legal renewal period, but refresher training is recommended to support consistency in documentation standards across your team, updated knowledge of legislation and regulatory expectations, and ongoing staff confidence in their practice.

Why Organisations Book With Prima Cura

Most training providers arrive with a course. We arrive with yours.

Before the day, we gather information about your workplace: your incident reporting forms, your internal procedures, and the specific hazards your team actually faces. On the day, your trainer works that into every scenario, every discussion, every practical exercise. If your staff work in a care home, they’re not practising on hypothetical office workers. If your team are lone workers, that context shapes how the session runs.

It means the training lands. Not because it was well-delivered in a generic sense, but because it was relevant to the people in the room and the situations they’ll actually encounter.

A few other things that matter to the organisations that book with us:

  • 98.9% learner satisfaction across all Prima Cura courses
  • All trainers hold Enhanced DBS certificates and maintain ongoing CPD
  • We advise honestly on the qualification level at the enquiry stage. If a different course is a better fit for your workforce, we’ll say so before you book, not after

We respond to all enquiries within one working day.

Where We Deliver

We deliver in-house training at your workplace or chosen venue across Manchester, Greater Manchester, and the wider North West. We also deliver nationally across England, including North England, South England, London, and Surrey.

All sessions are led by experienced Prima Cura Training instructors. Groups are capped at 15 per trainer to protect the quality of hands-on learning.

Our associate network means we can deliver across England. You can meet the team on our Associates page.

FAQs

Why is record-keeping important in a business?

Records are the documented evidence of what your organisation has done, decided, and communicated. They protect you in disputes, support you during audits, and give regulators, insurers, and courts something concrete to work with. The HSE’s position is straightforward: if it isn’t recorded, it can’t be proven. That applies whether you’re defending a personal injury claim, responding to an enforcement visit, or demonstrating compliance with a specific regulation.

What are the legal requirements around record-keeping in the UK?

It depends on your sector and the type of records involved, but several pieces of legislation create specific obligations. The Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR set the framework for handling personal data. RIDDOR 2013 requires records of reportable workplace incidents to be kept for at least three years. The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require documented risk assessments where five or more employees are employed. This course covers the key legal context relevant to most UK organisations.

How does this training relate to GDPR and data protection?

The UK GDPR requires organisations to handle personal data lawfully, accurately, and securely. For most staff, that means understanding what can and can’t be recorded about individuals, how that information should be stored, who it can be shared with, and when sharing it would be a breach. Poor record keeping and poor data handling often overlap, and this course addresses both.

Who is responsible for record-keeping?

Every member of staff who creates or contributes to records is responsible for the accuracy of their own entries. Oversight may sit with managers or compliance leads, but accountability for individual records sits with the individual who wrote them. This course makes that responsibility clear and gives staff the practical tools to fulfil it confidently.

Related Courses

Book or Enquire

Book your training or request a quote

Tell us your team size and your sector. We’ll come back with a quote, the right advice on qualification level, and a straight answer on whether this is the best course for your team.

We respond to all enquiries within one working day.

Our Commitment to Quality and Compliance

At Prima Cura Training, all courses reflect current UK guidance and best practice. All trainers are experienced professionals with relevant qualifications and ongoing CPD. Because many of the organisations we support work with vulnerable individuals, all trainers hold Enhanced DBS checks.

This course is reviewed against updates from the Information Commissioner’s Office and the Health and Safety Executive, and current UK legislation, including the UK GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018, the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, and RIDDOR 2013.

You can read more on our Quality Assurance and Compliance page.

Reviewed by Stephanie Austin, Owner and Lead Trainer, Prima Cura Training | 25+ years in health and social care | 15+ years as a trainer | Last reviewed: June 2026 | Next review: June 2027

This page is for general guidance only and reflects current UK legislation and ICO and HSE guidance as of the date of review. It does not constitute legal advice. This course provides guidance on reporting, record keeping, and information governance in workplace settings. It does not replace organisational policies or legal responsibilities. Organisations remain responsible for ensuring compliance with UK legislation, including the UK GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018, and sector-specific reporting obligations.

< back

Enquire about Reporting, Record Keeping and Information Governance