What this helps you do.
- Registered providers seeking a clear view of their compliance position.
- Directors and managers who need an independent review of existing assurance arrangements.
Scope of the review
- Applicable fundamental standards, including Regulation 9A where relevant.
- Governance, records, staffing, safety and person-centred care arrangements within the agreed scope.
- Relevant requirements of the 2009 Registration Regulations, including statutory notifications.
How it works
- Agree coverage
Identify locations, activities, applicable requirements and sampling limits.
- Examine evidence
Review minimised records, policies and selected operational examples.
- Test understanding
Clarify how arrangements work through agreed management or staff discussions.
- Report and prioritise
Set out supported findings and an action plan for management ownership.
What you receive
- Executive summary and requirement-by-requirement findings.
- Evidence references, scope limitations and unanswered questions.
- Prioritised improvement plan with proposed responsibilities and review points.
Explore a fictional report and action plan, or create your own non-confidential working plan.
What to prepare
- Service profile, current policies and governance records.
- Existing audits, complaints themes, incident learning and action plans.
- A proportionate sample of redacted operational evidence.
Use evidence references in an initial brief. Confidential records need an agreed secure handling route.
Scope and limits
- An audit is a sampled review at a stated time, not a guarantee that every issue has been identified.
- The report is independent audit output; it is not a CQC rating, statutory inspection report or certification.
Common questions
Does the review cover every regulation?
The scope records which requirements apply to your service and which are examined. Exclusions and areas requiring specialist input are made explicit.
Can the audit be completed remotely?
Document review and interviews may be remote. Whether observation or a visit is necessary depends on the questions the engagement must answer.
Sources and review
Content version: 1 November 2026. The proposed scope must be confirmed in engagement terms.
Start with a focused brief.
Describe the service and the questions you need this review to address.
Discuss your requirementsA worked example of the review
Illustrative example — not a client case. This shows a possible working method; it does not report an actual engagement or outcome.
Following a concern from feedback to management action
Suppose a care home's feedback log records a recurring concern, but the management summary describes it as resolved without showing what changed.
- Define the relevant governance and feedback requirements and agree which records and experiences the audit will examine.
- Trace the concern through a proportionate sample of feedback records, meeting notes, decisions and follow-up evidence.
- Separate what the records establish from what remains uncertain. Record the gap, the possible risk and an accountable owner for further action.
- Check later evidence against an agreed completion test, including whether the change addressed the concern in practice.
A finding relates to the evidence and sample examined. It is not a judgement about every part of the service or an official CQC rating.
Related guidance and next steps
Content version: . Named expert review remains pending for public launch.