The big news for home care providers: Inside CQC’s new draft framework
The future of adult social care assessment is taking shape and it’s being built collaboratively. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has published its draft sector‑specific assessment frameworks offering a breath of fresh air for the health and social care in England.
The good news is that home care providers have already played a major role in shaping the new framework alongside research from the Care Provider Alliance (CPA) and its subsequent report, people who use home care services, CQC teams and others across the sector.
The CPA has been especially helpful, giving honest, practical feedback based on what providers face every day. Here are some of the key points they have raised, many of which will feel very familiar to anyone running or working in a home care service:
- Clearer boundaries between rating levels – so providers understand exactly what separates Good from Outstanding or Requires Improvement from Inadequate
- More focus on real‑life impact – not just policies and paperwork, but how care actually feels for people in their own homes
- Recognising the commissioning landscape – and being realistic about what providers can control (like quality and culture) versus what they can’t (like visit lengths or local authority rates)
- Simpler, clearer language – so the framework is easier to understand and apply in day‑to‑day practice
- A closer look at certain areas, such as timely and equitable access and environmental sustainability, to make sure they make sense for home care
Why this matters for home care
Home care is unlike any other part of the sector. Providers deliver highly personalised support in people’s own homes, often with lone workers, tight schedules and a strong emphasis on dignity, independence and continuity. The environment is personal, the relationships are close and the expectations from families and individuals are understandably high.
The CQC has clearly recognised that a one‑size‑fits‑all approach simply doesn’t work for this kind of service. That’s why the new framework aims to:
- Reflect the real day‑to‑day challenges of providing care in people’s homes
- Give providers clearer, more relevant expectations
- Support fair, consistent and transparent assessments
- Highlight what good and outstanding home care truly looks like
- Keep the experiences of people using services at the heart of every judgement
This shift is designed to make regulation feel more aligned with the work that home care providers focus on and what matters most to people using services.
For the first time, adult social care, including domiciliary care has a framework shaped around how services in this part of the sector actually operate. This means home care providers will now be assessed against key lines of enquiry that are genuinely specific to the realities of delivering care in people’s homes.
Four sector specific frameworks
There will be four sector specific frameworks, each designed to make inspection criteria more relevant and meaningful for the services they apply to.
- Adult social care
- Primary care and community services
- Mental health care
- Secondary and specialist care (hospitals)
Each of these frameworks has four components:
The five key questions
Is the service:
- Safe
- Effective
- Caring
- Responsive
- Well-led
Key lines of enquiry
Within the draft sector‑specific assessment frameworks the framework includes key lines of enquiry which set out what will be assessed under each of the five key questions. Every key question is supported by between three and seven of these focused enquiries, replacing the previous quality statements.
Rating characteristics
This is one of the most valuable updates! The framework now provides clear, sector‑specific descriptions of what Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement, and Inadequate look like specifically within home care.
These clearer definitions help providers to:
- Understand exactly what the CQC expects
- Benchmark your service against consistent standards
- Identify and plan targeted improvements
- Prepare for inspection with greater confidence
The draft framework also sets out clearer boundaries between rating levels and explains how each rating links to regulatory compliance. It offers practical guidance on what providers should aim to achieve at every level.
‘I statements’
The ‘I statements’ are a central part of the new assessment framework, keeping the focus firmly on what matters most to people who use home care services. They come from the Making It Real framework, which was co‑produced by Think Local Act Personal (TLAP) alongside people with lived experience of health and social care.
For home care providers, these statements ensure that care is shaped around the individual rather than the system. The ‘I statements’ guide how the CQC gathers, listens to and uses feedback from people receiving home care. Real experiences, positive or negative, will directly influence how services are assessed and what action the CQC takes.
This approach means the voices of people receiving care at home will have a stronger influence than ever on how judgements are formed.
Supporting guidance to help providers
Alongside the new frameworks, the CQC will publish detailed guidance to help providers understand exactly what is expected. This guidance will:
- Explain the scope of each supporting question and what the CQC will look at under each key line of enquiry
- Show how each topic links to the fundamental standards of care
- Describe what good care looks like in different types of services, with links to recognised best practice
This guidance will be published separately so it can be updated more quickly as policies, evidence and best practice evolve. Any major changes to the frameworks themselves will still go through consultation.
The onwards journey
The CQC has already made changes based on this feedback and will continue exploring the remaining points as they continue speaking with providers, people using services and sector partners.
One thing worth noting: environmental sustainability isn’t included in the draft framework yet. The CQC say they need more time to understand how to approach this in a fair, evidence‑based way, especially in a sector where providers often have limited control over things like travel routes, visit patterns or commissioning decisions. They’ll be working with the sector to figure out the right approach.
This isn’t to say that providers avoid striving for sustainability. If you would like to explore this further our eBook How to Grow Your Home Care Business: Strategies for Sustainable Growth in Domiciliary Care offers practical guidance and insights to help providers build a more sustainable home care business.
What should providers do now?
This shift is a reminder that preparing for the future isn’t just about inspection readiness, it’s about embedding strong processes, clear outcomes and a culture of continuous improvement into everyday practice. These foundations are what truly drive consistent, high‑quality care, regardless of when the CQC visits.
Using technology to strengthen quality
To keep pace with the new framework, providers should continue exploring smarter, more efficient ways to enhance quality, and technology is central to that. Digital tools like MOA Benchmarking and CareLineLive give managers real‑time visibility of what’s happening across their service. They make it easier to track performance, identify strengths, spot early warning signs and take quick, informed action. This creates a cycle of ongoing learning and improvement, helping teams deliver care that is safer, more reliable and consistently aligned with what people receiving support say matters most.
As a CQC benchmarking tool, MOA Benchmarking will embed these updates directly into its audits, enabling providers to maintain compliance far more efficiently and with significant time savings.
A framework still in progress: Your chance to shape it
Over the coming weeks, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) will continue refining the draft before releasing the final version. While it is still evolving, this first iteration already provides a clear indication of where regulation is heading and how providers can begin preparing now.
The CQC is actively seeking input from home care providers as it develops its approach to inspecting and rating services. This is a valuable opportunity to help ensure the new framework works in practice for the home care sector. Feedback is open until 12 June, and providers are strongly encouraged to share their views.
