Check the scope
Registered providers and managers carrying on regulated activities in England. Requirements should be applied to the care, treatment, premises and equipment within the service’s responsibility.
What the law requires
- Provide care and treatment safely. Assess risks to people receiving care and do everything reasonably practicable to reduce those risks.
- Use suitably qualified and competent staff, safe premises and equipment, sufficient supplies where the provider supplies them, and safe medicines management.
- Assess and control infection risks. Where responsibility is shared or transferred, work with relevant people and services to ensure timely planning that protects health, safety and welfare.
What CQC expects
- CQC guidance expects competent assessment, current risk controls and prompt action when needs change. Risk management should consider the person’s rights and preferences.
- Staff should follow agreed plans, learn from incidents and respond to safety alerts. Arrangements should cover deterioration, emergencies and continuity when care moves between services.
Suggested checks for your review
- Trace a high-priority risk from assessment to the control used in practice, checking staff understanding and whether the control remains effective.
- Sample medicines changes, incidents or transfers and test whether important information reached the next person responsible.
- Check how the provider identifies overdue safety actions and escalates risks that frontline staff cannot resolve.
Illustrative evidence
Choose evidence relevant to the actual service and risk. These examples are not a universal list of documents required by CQC.
- Current risk assessments linked to individual care or treatment plans.
- Medicines records, competence assessments, equipment checks and infection-prevention reviews.
- Incident investigations and transfer records showing action, communication and follow-up.
Potential gaps to check
- An assessment identifies a significant risk but gives no practical instruction about who must act or when.
- Actions are marked complete after a policy update without checking the change in care.
- Shared-care arrangements leave uncertainty about responsibility for monitoring, supplies or escalation.
Sources and review
- cqc.org.uk — Regulation 12 (opens in a new tab)
- legislation.gov.uk — Uksi · 2014 · 2936 · regulation · 12 (opens in a new tab)
Content version: 1 November 2026. Next planned review 1 December 2026. Check current primary sources before relying on a requirement.
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Content version: . Named expert review remains pending for public launch.