CQC Regulated Activities Explained for New Providers

CQC registration is built around regulated activities. They are legally defined activities listed in Schedule 1 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, and a provider must register for each activity it carries on unless an exception or exemption applies.

A service label such as care home, homecare agency or supported living service does not by itself determine the answer. The actual tasks performed, the people receiving them and the way the service is organised all matter.

Regulated activity versus service type

A service can carry on more than one regulated activity, and providers with similar public descriptions can require different registration scopes. Start with what staff will actually do rather than the name chosen for the business.

• Who will receive the service and what needs will be met?
• What care, treatment or support tasks will staff perform?
• Who makes decisions and controls how those tasks are delivered?
• Where will the activity be delivered, organised or managed?
• Does a statutory exception or exemption apply to the exact arrangement?

Activities commonly considered by adult social care providers

Depending on the model, adult social care providers may need to consider activities including personal care; accommodation for persons who require nursing or personal care; nursing care; or treatment of disease, disorder or injury. These names have precise legal scopes and should not be selected solely from this summary.

• Personal care concerns specified personal-care support where the regulated-activity definition is met.
• Care-home models may involve accommodation for persons who require nursing or personal care.
• A service employing nurses does not automatically answer whether the separate nursing-care activity applies.
• Clinical tasks may require consideration of treatment of disease, disorder or injury and its exceptions.

Identify the person carrying on the activity

The responsible legal entity registers. CQC considers who has overall direction and control, including responsibility for the way the activity is provided. A location, building or care setting is not itself the registered person.

• Confirm whether the provider is an individual, partnership or organisation.
• Review contracts, staffing control, governance and financial responsibility.
• Use the provider's correct legal identity throughout all evidence.
• Separate provider responsibility from the nominated individual and registered manager roles.

Map activities to locations and managers

1. 1List every proposed service and the actual tasks it will perform.
2. 2Assess the legal definition, exceptions and exemptions for each possible activity.
3. 3Record which legal provider will carry on each activity.
4. 4Identify every relevant location for each activity.
5. 5Confirm which registered manager will manage each activity at each location.
6. 6Make the forms, statement of purpose and organisational chart match this map.

Changing activities after registration

Registration conditions define what the provider is authorised to do. If the service later plans to add a regulated activity, it must use CQC's current variation process and wait for approval before carrying on that new activity.

• Review registration conditions before changing the service model.
• Use the latest CQC variation form and guidance.
• Update locations, managers and the statement of purpose where required.
• Do not advertise or deliver a new regulated activity as though approval were automatic.