In the first series of related articles, we describe how assurance of patient safety in primary care was traditionally viewed by the medical profession hierarchy as being wholly dependent at the individual level upon a combination of education and training, knowledge, skill, experience and commitment to professional development. As well as summarising the evidence underpinning what we know about patient safety in primary care, we outline how contemporary thinking has evolved to recognise that the safety issue is complex, problematic and systemic, and that it is now beginning to attract the attention of national policymakers, educators and research funders in some countries. We also describe a range of recently developed educational safety concepts and methods that have been implemented as part of current national programme initiatives in the United Kingdom and internationally. Finally, we reflect on international progress on patient safety in primary care thus far; propose a future direction for related education, development and research; and briefly introduce the Human Factors based topics to be addressed in the forthcoming series of interrelated articles in this journal.