CQC Compliance Training Courses - CQC Statutory and Mandatory Training Courses -
These Care Quality Commission (CQC) compliance training courses were developed for regulated health and social care providers across England, including NHS Trusts, private and public hospitals, care homes, domiciliary care providers, hospices, and adult social services. The CPD Certification Service reviews and accredits our CQC courses externally.
Commitment to developing high-quality content
Our content development team is led by Dr Richard Dune, who has over 20 years of experience in health and social care workforce development and governance. Click here to view our entire catalogue of accredited courses and training programmes.
CQC Compliance Training Courses - CQC Statutory and Mandatory Training Courses
The Mandatory Training Group is the leading UK provider of accredited courses and Ofqual-approved qualifications to meet CQC compliance regulations, including statutory and mandatory training, health and safety, Microsoft Office, IT and cybersecurity, soft skills development, leadership and management.
What do we mean by CQC compliance training?
CQC compliance training courses include statutory and mandatory training courses for various staff groups in health and social care settings, including:
Our content development team is led by Dr Richard Dune, who has over 20 years of experience in health and social care workforce development and governance.
What is the role of the Care Quality Commission?
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is England's independent health and social care regulator. Search for CQC inspection reports to find and compare health and social care services. CQC reports tell you what CQC thinks of the quality of the care.
What is CQC's purpose?
CQC ensures that health and social care services provide safe, effective, compassionate, and high-quality care and encourages services to improve.
What is the CQC's role?
CQC's role is to:
- Register care providers
- monitor, inspect and rate services.
- Take action to protect people who use services.
- Speak independently, publishing their views on significant quality health and social care issues.
How does CQC achieve their role and purpose?
Throughout their work, CQC:
- Protect the rights of vulnerable people, including those restricted under the Mental Health Act.
- Listen to and act on your experiences.
- Involve the public and people who receive care
- Work with other organisations and public groups.
What are the CQC values?
The CQC values are:
- Excellence – being a high-performing organisation
- Caring – treating everyone with dignity and respect
- Integrity – doing the right thing
- Teamwork – learning from each other to be the best we can be.
Which services does CQC regulate?
Health and social care services are monitored, inspected, and regulated by the CQC, including:
- Hospitals, GPs, dentists, ambulances, and mental health services are among the activities regulated by the CQC.
- Adult treatment, care, and support services in care homes and people's own homes (both personal and nursing care).
- Mental health services for people whose rights are restricted by the Mental Health Act.
CQC regulates which types of services?
CQC regulates the following health and social care activities in England:
- Ambulances
- Care homes
- Hospitals
- Dental services
- Clinics
- Services in your home
- GP services
- Mental health
- In the community
CQC compliance training for ambulances services
The CQC inspects both NHS and independent ambulance services.
CQC compliance training for care homes
The CQC inspects care homes in England, including residential and nursing homes.
CQC compliance training for hospitals
Independent hospitals and NHS trusts are both inspected by the CQC.
CQC compliance training for dental services
The CQC inspects more than 10,000 dental services, both NHS and private.
CQC compliance training for healthcare clinics
Family planning and slimming clinics are among the services CQC inspects.
CQC compliance training for assistance in your home
The CQC inspects home care agencies, mobile doctors, and telephone services.
CQC compliance training for GP services and doctors
The CQC inspects GP practices, doctor-led services, walk-in centres and out-of-hours services.
CQC compliance training for mental health services
Mental health services, including those for detained patients, are inspected by the CQC in hospitals and community-based settings.
CQC compliance training for services in the community
Community-based health and social care services, such as those for people with learning disabilities, are inspected by the CQC.
Hospices
Hospice services that provide care to people with life-limiting conditions or who are near death are inspected by CQC.
Cross-sector inspections
Occasionally, CQC conducts joint inspections with other inspectorates. The CQC also conducts system-wide inspections. A system inspection aims to assess a group of services in a local area. CQC needs to know how each service works to provide care across the system.
CQC compliance training for children's services
CQC inspects children's health services in partnership with other inspectorates.
CQC compliance training for defence medical services
CQC inspects defence medical treatment facilities and the Defence Medical Services Regulator (DMSR).
CQC compliance training for prisons and secure settings
The CQC conducts joint inspections with the HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) and other inspection agencies.
CQC compliance training for urgent and emergency care systems
Across urgent and emergency care services, the CQC conducts localised system-wide inspections.
The five key questions CQC ask.
The health and social care industry is changing, and so is the CQC. The CQC is developing a new approach to regulating providers. The CQC will continue monitoring, assessing, and rating providers until the new framework launches in 2023.
CQC asks all health and social care services five questions. In addition to helping CQC focus on the things that matter to people, they are central to the way they regulate.
All services CQC inspects are asked the same five questions, as follows:
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Are they safe?
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Are they effective?
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Are they caring?
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Are they responsive to people's needs?
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Are they well-led?
How are the 5 CQC questions applied in practice?
- Service users must be protected from abuse and avoidable harm to be safe.
- Effective care, treatment, and support achieve good outcomes, maintain quality of life, and are evidence-based.
- A caring staff engages service users and treats them with compassion, kindness, dignity, and respect.
- To be responsive, services must be organized in such a way that they meet the needs of their users.
- A well-led organization ensures that high-quality care is provided based on the individual needs of service users, that learning and innovation are encouraged, and that an open, fair culture is fostered.
How does CQC use the five key questions in our inspections?
There are five key questions in the CQC, each with sub-questions. The CQC refers to these as their 'key lines of enquiry'. In inspections, CQC uses these findings to determine what CQC needs to focus on. The inspection team might examine how risks are identified and managed to determine whether a service is safe. In different sectors, CQC uses other key lines of inquiry.
Using key lines of enquiry, we can ensure that CQC consistently examines each of the five key questions and focuses on the areas that matter the most.
How CQC will regulate?
CQC needs to change how it works to achieve our ambitious strategy. The CQC will regulate smarter, adapting and responding to risk, uncertainty, and demand.
The CQC will assess the quality of care in a local area or healthcare system to prevent people from being injured.
Single assessment framework
CQC's new framework applies to providers, local authorities, and systems. The report focuses on people who use health and social care services and their families. By doing so, they can provide an up-to-date picture of quality.
From registration to how the CQC looks at local authorities and integrated care systems, it covers all sectors, service types, and levels of care.
New CQC framework
Ratings and the five key questions remain. Quality statements focus on specific topic areas under key questions. They set clear expectations of providers based on people’s experiences and the standards of care they expect. They replace CQC key lines of enquiry (KLOEs), prompts and rating characteristics.
CQC is introducing six new evidence categories to organise information under the statements
Registration is also based on this framework. It is the first assessment activity for providers in an integrated process.
How we will use the new inspectorate framework
To achieve its goals, CQC will do the following:
- Use a range of information to assess providers flexibly and frequently. Assessment is not tied to set dates or driven by a previous rating.
- Collect evidence on an ongoing basis and can update ratings at any time. This helps us respond more flexibly to changes in risk
- tailor our assessment to different types of providers and services
- score evidence to make our judgements more structured and consistent
- use inspections (site visits) as a vital tool to gather evidence to assess the quality
- use data and insight to decide which services to visit. When on-site, we will observe care and talk to staff and people who use services
- produce shorter and simpler reports, showing the most up-to-date assessment.
People’s experiences of health and care services
CQC encourage people who use services, and organisations acting on their behalf, to share their experiences.
CQC mandatory training considerations for health and social care providers
CQC have updated this to remove information about training during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. CQC have added information about the new requirement to train staff to support autistic people and people with learning disability.
CQC are often asked whether we specify mandatory training requirements for GP practices.
It is not CQC’s role to identify specific training for providers, and CQC does not specify any mandatory training for members of the GP practice team. This is because exact training requirements will depend on the following:
- role and specific responsibilities of practices
- needs of the people using the service.
Each GP practice is responsible for determining what mandatory and additional training its staff need. They are also responsible for how this is delivered. Online training may be acceptable as long as providers show staff have the competency, skills and knowledge to perform their roles.
Dr Richard Dune, The Mandatory Training Group UK
Individual practices must:
- decide what training is mandatory and how they deliver it
- make this clear to the staff
- monitor how staff engage with it.
To deliver safe, high-quality care and treatment, you must take reasonable steps to support staff to do their jobs. This is to keep both patients and practice staff safe. CQC will take regulatory action if this does not happen.
If you ask someone to work outside their usual scope of practice, this must be within their competencies and not be against their will. They must also be supported and supervised appropriately and adequately equipped.
Healthcare workers should not be expected to take on activities they have not been trained to do or lack the skills. You may need to offer training or development to ensure your staff have up-to-date skills and knowledge.
The clinician must be registered with a professional body to perform specific roles. Providers must still meet that professional regulator’s requirements.
The Health and Care Act 2022 introduced a new legal requirement on 1 July 2022. All providers registered with CQC must ensure their staff receive training to support autistic people and people with learning disabilities. CQC does not tell you precisely how to meet your legal requirements concerning this training.
When CQC inspect
CQC use these Regulations when CQC review whether the practice is safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led. CQC may not assess every regulation. However, if there are concerns relating to staffing, we use Regulation 18 (Staffing).
CQC will look at whether you have enough suitably qualified, competent, skilled and experienced staff to meet the needs of the people using the service at all times. This includes:
- when they start their employment
- when they take on new responsibilities
- on an ongoing basis.
CQC check how you identify the learning needs of staff and whether they have the appropriate training to meet them and cover the scope of their work.
Although CQC does not have a definitive list of mandatory training, CQC expects to see evidence of training. For example, this could include:
- basic life support
- infection control
- fire safety training
- Mental Capacity Act and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards
- training to the appropriate level on safeguarding adults at risk and safeguarding children.
- Information governance.
CQC could ask you to show evidence of clinical staff training linked to their specific clinical responsibilities. For example, nursing staff could be trained to take samples for the cervical screening programme or administer vaccines. It could be extended roles in treating minor illnesses and long-term conditions.
Legislation
You must do certain things by law if you run a care service and carry on a regulated activity. The law also makes requirements of CQC and sets out the powers it has to regulate services.
These requirements are set out in acts and regulations, referred to as the 'relevant legislation'. You'll find links to the relevant legislation below. This guidance does not give legal advice on the applicable legislation. You should always seek legal advice about your current position before taking action.
Health and Social Care Act 2008
The Health and Social Care Act 2008 established the Care Quality Commission as the regulator of all health and adult social care services. It is a single Act of Parliament that sets out our powers and duties and represents the modernisation and integration of health and social care. It contains some powers of enforcement that were not held by any of the predecessor organisations.
Regulations
Regulations are made under powers set out in the Health and Social Care Act 2008, and they provide more detail about the powers and duties of the commission and the duties of people providing and managing services. The regulations made under the central Act change more frequently than the Act itself.
It is essential to be aware of all the up-to-date provisions.
Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014
These regulations contain definitions of the services and activities people must be registered to provide. In some cases, they have details about the stages at which different types of providers will be brought into the registration system. They also contain details of the standards that people registered to provide and manage services will have to observe.
Care Quality Commission (Registration) Regulations 2009
These regulations came into force on 1 April 2010. They apply to all regulated activities and make requirements about how people who wish to provide or manage a regulated activity in England can become registered.
The full, up-to-date version of the Care Quality Commission (Registration) Regulations 2009 is not currently available at legislation.gov.uk.
Terms and conditions for using legislation listed on our website
CQC provide the legislation to users of this site subject to their copyright terms and subject to its use only for research purposes.
Users are not permitted to download the legislation for storage or manipulation at any other location or to use it in any way that will distort or alter its original intention or meaning.
The legislation is provided for reference only and is not intended as a substitute for the exercise of professional judgement or legal advice.
Regulations for service providers and managers: related guidance
This page provides further information and guidance related to the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 and Care Quality Commission (Registration) Regulations 2009.
CQC registration regulations: related guidance
- Regulation 4: Requirements where the service provider is an individual or partnership
- Regulation 5: Fit and proper persons: directors
- Regulation 6: Requirement where the service provider is a body other than a partnership
- Regulation 7: Requirements relating to registered managers
- Regulation 8: General
- Regulation 9: Person-centred care
- Regulation 10: Dignity and respect
- Regulation 11: Need for consent
- Regulation 12: Safe care and treatment
- Regulation 13: Safeguarding service users from abuse and improper treatment
- Regulation 14: Meeting nutritional and hydration needs
- Regulation 15: Premises and equipment
- Regulation 16: Receiving and acting on complaints
- Regulation 17: Good governance
- Regulation 18: Staffing
- Regulation 19: Fit and proper persons employed
- Regulation 20: Duty of candour
- Regulation 20A: Requirement to display performance assessments.
Regulation 4: Requirements where the service provider is an individual or partnership
The intention of CQC Regulation 4 is to ensure that people who use services have their needs met because an appropriate person provides the service.
To meet the requirements of this regulation, providers must register with CQC under Section 10 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008. The registered
provider or partners of the registered provider must:
- Be of good character.
- Be able to perform tasks that are intrinsic to their role correctly.
- Have the necessary qualifications, competence, skills and experience to carry on the regulated activity or supervise its management.
- Supply CQC with documents confirming their suitability (see the information and documents identified in Schedule 3 of the regulations).
CQC cannot prosecute for a breach of this regulation or any of its parts, but we can take regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for
more detail.
CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Regulation 5: Fit and proper persons: directors
The intention of CQC Regulation 5 is to ensure that people who have director-level responsibility for the quality and safety of care and for meeting the
fundamental standards are fit and proper to carry out this vital role.
CQC cannot prosecute for a breach of this regulation or any of its parts, but we can take regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for
more detail.
- Conduct, ethics and performance
- Disclosure and Barring identity checking guidelines
- DBS checks for CQC registration
- End-of-life care
- Equality and human rights.
Regulation 6: Requirement where the service provider is a body other than a partnership
The intention of CQC Regulation 6 is to ensure that the provider is represented by an appropriate person nominated by the organisation to carry out this role
on their behalf (nominated individual). The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the regulated activity provided.
This is because providers who comply with this regulation will have appointed as a nominated individual a director, manager or secretary who:
- He is of good character.
- Can perform tasks that are intrinsic to their role correctly.
- Has the necessary qualifications, competence, skills and experience to supervise the management of the regulated activity.
- Has supplied them with documents that confirm their suitability.
CQC cannot prosecute for a breach of this regulation or its parts, but we can take regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for
more detail.
CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Regulation 7: Requirements relating to registered managers
The intention of CQC Regulation 7 is to ensure that people who use services have their needs met because the regulated activity is managed by an
appropriate person.
This is because providers who comply with the regulations will have a registered manager who:
- He is of good character.
- Can perform tasks that are intrinsic to their role correctly.
- Has the necessary qualifications, competence, skills and experience to manage the regulated activity.
- Has supplied them with documents that confirm their suitability.
CQC cannot prosecute for a breach of this regulation or its parts, but we can take regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for
more detail.
CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Regulation 8: General
The intention of CQC Regulation 8 is to make it clear that if a provider has more than one registered person (for example, a registered provider and a registered
manager), they do not all individuals need to take the same action to meet every regulation. However, they must ensure that they encounter every
regulation for each regulated activity they provide and that all the registered people must comply with the requirements of the regulations.
It also states that for Regulations 9 to 20A, sections 2 and 3 of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 must be considered for people who use the service who are
aged 16 or over to determine whether they lack the mental capacity to consent.
Regulation 9: Person-centred care
The intention of CQC Regulation 9 is to ensure that people using a service have care or treatment that is personalised for them. This regulation describes the action that providers must take to ensure that each person receives appropriate person-centred care and treatment based on an assessment of their needs and preferences.
Providers must work in partnership with the person, make any reasonable adjustments and provide support to help them understand and make informed decisions about their care and treatment options, including the extent to which they may wish to manage these options themselves.
Providers must ensure that they consider people’s capacity and ability to consent and that either they or a person lawfully acting on their behalf must be involved in the planning, management and review of their care and treatment. Providers must make sure that they make decisions with the legal authority or responsibility to do so. Still, they must work within the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005, which includes the duty to consult others such as carers, families and/or advocates where appropriate.
Please see the glossary (Annex C) for necessary clarification of the terms “appropriate care and treatment”, “needs”, “preferences”,; and “relevant person”.
CQC cannot prosecute for a breach of this regulation or any of its parts, but we can take regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for more detail. CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Regulation 10: Dignity and respect
The intention of CQC Regulation 10 is to ensure that people using the service are treated with respect and dignity at all times while receiving care and treatment. To meet this regulation, providers must ensure that they provide care and treatment to ensure people’s dignity and treat them with respect at all times. This includes ensuring that people have privacy when they need and want it, treating them as equals and providing any support they might need to be autonomous, independent and involved in their local community.
Providers must have due regard for the protected characteristics defined in the Equality Act 2010. CQC cannot prosecute providers for a breach of this regulation or its parts, but we can take regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance
for more detail. CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Regulation 11: Need for consent
The intention of CQC Regulation 11 is to ensure that all people using the service, and those lawfully acting on their behalf, have given consent before any care or treatment is provided. Providers must make sure that they obtain the consent legally and that the person who gets the consent has the necessary knowledge and understanding of the care and/or treatment for which they are asking consent.
Consent is an important aspect of providing care and treatment, but in some cases, acting strictly in accordance with consent will mean that some other regulations cannot be met. For example, this might apply to nutrition and person-centred care.
However, providers must not provide unsafe or inappropriate care just because someone has consented to care or treatment that would be unsafe. See the glossary (Annex C) for the definition of ‘relevant person’ in relation to Regulation 11.
CQC can prosecute for a breach of this regulation or a breach of part of the regulation and can move directly to prosecution without first serving a Warning Notice. Additionally, CQC may also take other regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for more detail. CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Regulation 12: Safe care and treatment
The intention of CQC Regulation 12 is to prevent people from receiving unsafe care and treatment and prevent avoidable harm or risk of harm. Providers must assess the risks to people’s health and safety during any care or treatment and ensure that staff have the qualifications, competence, skills and experience to keep people safe.
Providers must ensure that the premises and equipment used are safe and, where applicable, available in sufficient quantities. Medicines must be supplied in sufficient quantities, managed safely and administered appropriately to ensure people are safe.
Providers must prevent and control the spread of infection. Where the responsibility for care and treatment is shared, care planning must be timely to maintain people’s health, safety and welfare.
CQC understands that there may be inherent risks in carrying out care and treatment, and we will not consider it to be unsafe if providers can demonstrate that they have taken all reasonable steps to ensure the health and safety of people using their services and to manage risks that may arise during care and treatment.
CQC can prosecute for a breach of this regulation or a breach of part of the regulation if a failure to meet the regulation results in avoidable harm to a person using the service or if a person using the service is exposed to a significant risk of harm. We do not have to serve a Warning Notice before prosecution. Additionally, CQC may also take other regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for more detail.
CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Note that this regulation does not apply to the person’s accommodation if this is not provided as part of their care and treatment.
Regulation 13: Safeguarding service users from abuse and improper treatment
The intention of CQC Regulation 13 is to safeguard people who use services from suffering any form of abuse or improper treatment while receiving care and
treatment. Improper treatment includes discrimination or unlawful restraint, which includes inappropriate deprivation of liberty under the terms of the
Mental Capacity Act 2005.
To meet the requirements of this regulation, providers must have a zero-tolerance approach to abuse, unlawful discrimination and restraint. This
includes:
- Neglect.
- Subjecting people to degrading treatment.
- Unnecessary or disproportionate restraint.
- Deprivation of liberty.
Providers must have robust procedures and processes to prevent people using the service from being abused by staff or other people they may have contact with when using the Service, including visitors. Abuse and improper treatment include care or treatment that is degrading to people and care or treatment that significantly disregards their needs or involves inappropriate recourse to restraint. For these purposes, ‘restraint’ includes the use or threat of force and physical, chemical or mechanical methods of restricting liberty to overcome a person’s resistance to the treatment in question.
Where any form of abuse is suspected, occurs, is discovered, or reported by a third party, the provider must take appropriate action without delay. The action they must take includes investigation and/or referral to the appropriate body. This applies whether the third party reporting an occurrence is internal or external to the provider.
CQC can prosecute for a breach of some parts of this regulation (13(1) to 13(4)) if a failure to meet those parts results in avoidable harm to a person using the service or if a person using the service is exposed to a significant risk of harm. We do not have to serve a Warning Notice before prosecution.
Additionally, CQC may also take any other regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for more detail. CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Regulation 14: Meeting nutritional and hydration needs
The intention of CQC Regulation 14 is to make sure that people who use services have adequate nutrition and hydration to sustain life and good health and reduce the risks of malnutrition and dehydration while they receive care and treatment.
To meet this regulation, which is part of their role, providers must make sure that people have enough to eat and drink to meet their nutrition and hydration needs and receive the support they need to do so. People must have their nutritional needs assessed, and food must be provided to meet those needs. This includes where people are prescribed nutritional supplements and/or parenteral nutrition.
People’s preferences and religious and cultural backgrounds must be considered when providing food and drink. CQC can prosecute for a breach of this regulation or a breach of part of the regulation if a failure to meet the regulation results in avoidable harm to a
person using the service or a person using the service is exposed to a significant risk of harm. CQC can move directly to prosecution in these instances without first serving a Warning Notice. Additionally, CQC may also take any other regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for more detail.
CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Regulation 15: Premises and equipment
The intention of CQC Regulation 15 is to make sure that the premises where care and treatment are delivered are clean, suitable for the intended purpose, maintained and where required, appropriately located, and that the equipment that is used to deliver care and treatment is clean, suitable for the intended purpose, maintained, stored securely and used properly. Providers retain legal responsibility under these regulations when they delegate responsibility through contracts or legal agreements to a third party, independent suppliers, professionals, supply chains or contractors.
Therefore, they must ensure that they meet the regulation, as responsibility for any shortfall rests with the provider. Where the person using the service owns the equipment needed to deliver their care and treatment, or the provider does not provide it, the provider should make every effort to make sure that it is clean, safe and suitable for use.
CQC cannot prosecute for a breach of this regulation or any of its parts, but we can take regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for more detail.
CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Note that ‘Premises’ and ‘equipment’ are defined in the regulations. The definitions ensure that the term ‘premises’ does not apply to the person’s accommodation where accommodation is not provided as part of their care and treatment. In addition, ‘equipment’ does not include equipment at the person’s accommodation, where it is not provided as part of their care or treatment.
Regulation 16: Receiving and acting on complaints
The intention of CQC Regulation 16 is to make sure that people can make a complaint about their care and treatment. To meet this regulation, providers must have an effective and accessible system for identifying, receiving, handling and responding to complaints from people using the service, people acting on their behalf or other stakeholders. All complaints must be investigated thoroughly, and any necessary action must be taken where failures have been identified.
When requested to do so, providers must provide CQC with a summary of complaints, responses and other related correspondence or information. CQC can prosecute providers for a breach of the part of this regulation (16(3)) related to providing information to CQC about a complaint within 28 days when requested. CQC can move directly to prosecution without first serving a Warning Notice. In addition, CQC may take any other regulatory action in response to breaches of this regulation. See the offences section of this guidance for more detail.
CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Regulation 17: Good governance
The intention of CQC Regulation 17 is to ensure that providers have systems and processes that can meet other requirements in this part of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 (Regulations 4 to 20A). To meet this regulation, providers must have effective governance, including assurance and auditing systems or processes. These must assess, monitor and drive improvement in the quality and safety of the services provided, including the quality of the experience for people using the service. The systems and processes must also assess, monitor and mitigate any risks relating to the health, safety and welfare of people using services and others. Providers must continually evaluate and seek to improve
their governance and auditing practice.
In addition, providers must securely maintain accurate, complete and detailed records in respect of each person using the service and records relating to the employment of staff and the overall management of the regulated activity.
As part of their governance, providers must seek and act on feedback from people using the service, those acting on their behalf, staff and other stakeholders so that they can continually evaluate the service and drive improvement. When requested, providers must provide a written report to CQC setting out how they assess, monitor, and, where required, improve the quality and safety of their services.
CQC can prosecute for a breach of part of this regulation (17(3)) if a provider fails to submit such a report when requested. CQC may consider that this failure could prevent the provider from taking appropriate, timely action. CQC could therefore move directly to prosecution for a breach of this part of the regulation without first serving a Warning Notice.
Regulatory action can be taken for other parts of the regulation. See the offences section of this guidance for more detail. CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Regulation 18: Staffing
The intention of CQC Regulation 18 is to ensure that providers deploy enough suitably qualified, competent and experienced staff to meet all other regulatory requirements described in this part of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. To meet the regulation, providers must provide sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, competent, skilled and experienced staff to meet the needs of the people using the service at all times and the other regulatory requirements set out in this part of the above regulations. Staff must receive the support, training,
professional development, supervision and appraisals necessary to carry out their role and responsibilities. They should be supported to obtain further qualifications and provide evidence, where required, to the appropriate regulator to show that they meet the professional standards needed to continue to practise.
CQC cannot prosecute for a breach of this regulation or any of its parts, but we can take regulatory action. See the offence section of this guidance for more detail. CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Regulation 19: Fit and proper persons employed
The intention of CQC Regulation 19 is to ensure that providers only employ ‘fit and proper’ staff who can provide care and treatment appropriate to their role and enable them to provide the regulated activity. Providers must operate robust recruitment procedures to meet this regulation, including undertaking relevant checks. They must have a procedure for ongoing staff monitoring to ensure they remain able to meet the requirements, and they must have appropriate arrangements in place to deal with staff who are no longer fit to carry out the duties required of them.
Employing unfit people, or continuing to allow unfit people to stay in a role, may lead CQC to question the fitness of a provider.
If CQC considers that a breach of this regulation is also a breach of another regulation(s) that carries offence clauses, then we can move directly to prosecution without serving a Warning Notice. For example, in situations where the care and treatment are provided without the consent of a person using the service or someone lawfully acting on their behalf, and where it is unsafe, does not meet the person’s nutritional needs, results in abuse, or puts the person at risk of abuse.
CQC cannot prosecute for a breach of this regulation or any of its parts, but we can take regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for
more detail. CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
Regulation 20: Duty of candour
The intention of CQC Regulation 20 is to ensure that providers are open and transparent with people who use services and other ‘relevant persons’ (people
acting lawfully on their behalf) in general in relation to care and treatment. It also sets out some specific requirements that providers must follow when things go wrong with care and treatment, including informing people about the incident, providing reasonable support, providing truthful information and an apology when things go wrong.
The regulation applies to registered persons carrying on a regulated activity. CQC can prosecute for a breach of parts 20(2)(a) and 20(3) of this regulation and can move directly to prosecution without first serving a Warning Notice.
Additionally, CQC may also take other regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for more detail.
Regulation 20A: Requirement as to display of performance assessments
The intention of CQC Regulation 20A will apply to all providers when they have received a CQC performance assessment for their regulated activities. Providers must ensure that their rating(s) are displayed conspicuously and legibly at each location delivering a regulated service and on their website (if they have one).
The regulation outlines the information that must be included. CQC will develop posters for providers and digital products to use on websites. Using these
will help providers ensure that they display all the information required under this regulation. CQC can prosecute for a breach of this regulation or a breach of part of the regulation and can move directly to prosecution without first serving a Warning Notice.
Additionally, CQC may also take other regulatory action. See the offences section of this guidance for more detail.
CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.
CQC fundamental standards training courses
The fundamental standards are the standards below which your care must never fall. Everybody has the right to expect the following standards:
- Person-centred care
- Dignity and respect
- Consent
- Safety
- Safety
- Safeguarding from abuse
- Food and drink
- Premises and equipment
- Complaints
- Good governance
- Staffing
- Fit and proper staff
- Duty of candour
- Display of ratings.
Person-centred care
Care or treatment must be tailored to your needs and preferences.
Dignity and respect
You must be treated with dignity and respect while you're receiving care and treatment.
This includes making sure:
- You have privacy when you need and want it.
- Everybody is treated as equals.
- You're given any support you need to help you remain independent and involved in your local community.
Consent
You or anybody legally acting on your behalf must consent before any care or treatment is given to you.
Safety
You must not be given unsafe care or treatment or be put at risk of harm that could be avoided. Providers must assess your health and safety risks during any care or treatment and ensure their staff have the qualifications, competence, skills and experience to keep you safe.
Safeguarding from abuse
You must not suffer abuse or improper treatment while receiving care, including:
- Neglect
- Degrading treatment
- Unnecessary or disproportionate restraint
- Inappropriate limits on your freedom.
- Food and drink.
You must have enough to eat and drink to keep you in good health while you receive care and treatment.
Premises and equipment
The places where you receive care and treatment and the equipment used must be clean, suitable and looked after properly. The equipment used in your care and treatment must also be secure and used properly.
Complaints
You must be able to complain about your care and treatment. Your care provider must have a system to handle and respond to your complaint. They must investigate it thoroughly and take action if problems are identified.
Good governance
The provider of your care must have plans to meet these standards. They must have effective governance and systems to check on the quality and safety of care. These must help the service improve and reduce any risks to your health, safety and welfare.
Staffing
Your care provider must have enough suitably qualified, competent and experienced staff to meet these standards. Their staff must be given the support, training and supervision they need to help them do their job.
Fit and proper staff
The provider of your care must only employ people who can provide care and treatment appropriate to their role. They must have strong recruitment procedures in place and carry out relevant checks such as on applicants' criminal records and work history.
Duty of candour
The provider of your care must be open and transparent about your care and treatment. Should something go wrong, they must tell you what has happened, provide support and apologise.
Display of ratings
The provider of your care must display their CQC rating where you can see it. They must also include this information on their website and make our latest report on their service available.
About The Mandatory Training Group
Contact our Support Team to see how our CPDUK accredited CQC compliance training courses can help your organisation meet regulatory requirements.
CQC Mandatory Training Courses - Online CQC Compliance Courses - The Mandatory Training Group UK.
