The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is embarking on a fundamental piece of work to redefine what good quality regulation looks like. To achieve this, CQC is focused on establishing absolute clarity around its purpose, building consensus on the values and behaviours expected from a regulator and setting the right principles that underpin a successful regulatory approach.
Over the last two weeks CQC has engaged thousands of colleagues, providers and stakeholders to shape a new collective vision. This initiative known as The CQC Way will provide a clear framework that ensures regulation is credible, effective and focused on improvement.
Defining the future of regulation
CQC will use the feedback gathered to develop a charter outlining how it will work to fulfil its purpose and what people, whether colleagues, providers, stakeholders or the public should expect. This will serve as a public commitment to better more effective regulation.
This work is being co-designed in collaboration with colleagues, providers and stakeholders. In the last two weeks, CQC leaders have travelled to Newcastle, Manchester, Bristol and London to listen to views on the future of regulation.
Key themes emerged from these discussions:
- CQC colleagues emphasised the need for an open culture, the right tools and the support to do their jobs effectively
- Providers stressed the importance of regular, timely assessments and a simpler, clearer regulatory approach
- People who use services highlighted the positive impact that strong regulation has on their lives and the quality of care they receive
There was broad agreement that while credible and strong regulation is essential, the current system is not yet delivering on this promise. However, there is a shared commitment to working together to make the necessary improvements.
Next steps
In the coming weeks, CQC will analyse feedback from these engagement events and from the past 18 months to develop draft proposals for a new framework. These proposals will focus on:
- Why CQC exists: Reaffirming its core purpose of ensuring safe, effective, compassionate and high-quality care
- What CQC aims to achieve: Setting medium and long-term priorities for assessment and improvement
- How CQC works: Defining shared values and behavioural expectations for both colleagues and providers
These draft proposals will then be shared for further feedback through online engagement and in-person events
Immediate improvement actions
While the work on The CQC Way will shape long-term regulatory improvements, immediate action is also being taken. CQC is committed to making urgent progress in four key areas:
- Publishing outstanding reports: Reducing delays in sharing assessment results
- Increasing assessment capacity: Completing more assessments each month to provide up-to-date ratings
- Clearing the registration backlog: Ensuring new services can begin delivering care
- Acting promptly on concerns: Strengthening responsiveness to information of concern and notifications
Already, significant progress is being made. In recent weeks, the number of overdue registration cases has decrease and delayed assessment publications have been reduced from around 500 to 300. Steps are also being taken to streamline the assessment process for greater efficiency.
A commitment to improvement
CQC acknowledges that regulation has not met expectations in recent times. While immediate fixes may not happen overnight, there is a strong commitment to working collaboratively with colleagues, providers and stakeholders to rebuild confidence in the regulatory system.
This journey toward better more effective regulation is well underway. Stay tuned for further updates on how to get involved in shaping the future of CQC. You can do this by signing up to CQC news updates.
