Duffy and Shaw are committed to keeping our colleagues updated on the latest information from CQC on the new Assessment Framework.
CQC provided a significant guidance update on 17 November 2023; here’s a summary with links to make your life easier.
Areas of Published Guidance
CQC has published additional guidance to providers regarding the new assessment framework relevant to the topics below:
- How CQC will roll out the new assessments
- How CQC will calculate the first scores
- How CQC gather evidence
- Display your ratings: posters
In addition, they have asked for feedback from providers and people interested in the new framework, which gives you the opportunity to make your opinion known on their approach to the guidance and the new framework.
CQC has requested feedback from providers on the following areas, which provides you the opportunity to tell about your thoughts on the new assessment framework and how they are rolling it out! The links for these are set out below:
- Share your feedback on ‘how we’ll gather evidence’ guidance
- Share your feedback on ‘how we’ll roll out our new assessments’ guidance
- Share your feedback on ‘how we’ll calculate your first score’ guidance
- Share your feedback on ‘how we’ll calculate your first score’ guidance
- Share your feedback on ‘how we’ll report our findings’ guidance
- Share your feedback on ‘display your ratings: posters’ guidance
Updated guidance summary from CQC
Rollout of the new framework
CQC issued on the 17 November an update on the roll out of the new assessment approach, with dates for all regions starting from the 21 November through to the March 2024 to full out.
Please see: How CQC will roll out the new assessments
21 November 2023 they will start using the new single assessment framework in their South region.
21 November to 4 December 2023 they will undertake a small number of planned assessments with 14 early adopter providers, whilst continuing to respond to risk. They will then expand the new assessment to all providers on a risk based schedule.
5 December 2023 CQC will be using their new regulatory approach with all providers in their South region and with providers in the Bedford, Luton and Milton Keynes integrated care system area (ICS).
8 January 2024 they will start using the new single assessment framework in the London and East of England region.
23 January 2024 they will start using the new regulatory approach with a small number of providers in the North and Midlands regions.
6 February 2024 CQC will start using the new regulatory approach with all providers in the North and Midlands regions. At this stage they will include NHS well-led assessments.
CQC will inform and contact providers in each area before their roll out, and include more information on what to expect.
Calculating the first scores
As you are likely to know CQC are employing a new scoring system to decide the ratings for providers following updated assessments.
These are applied to each Quality Statement assessed by CQC, and the following hyper link provides information on this:
How CQC will calculate the first scores
CQC prior to the first assessment will select quality statements which they will assess your service on, based on national priorities, the type of service and relevant to the information they have on your service e.g. an Outstanding service or a Requires Improvement service.
CQC during the assessment will collect evidence for the Quality Statement and use this evidence to score the service.
Those Quality Statements which have not been assessed, their scores will be based on the current published rating for the key question based on the following:
- 4 for each quality statement where the key question is rated as outstanding
- 3 for each quality statement where the key question is rated as good
- 2 for each quality statement where the key question is rated as requires improvement
- 1 for each quality statement where the key question is rated as inadequate
The exceptions to this are:
All services:
- The initial scores for the workforce wellbeing and enablement quality statement will be based on the well-led key question rating, as this topic area has moved from well-led to caring in the new framework.
- CQC will not apply an initial score for the environmental sustainability quality statement. This is because it is a new area in the framework.
Adult social care only:
- The initial scores for the care provision, integration and continuity quality statement will be based on the well-led key question rating.
- The initial scores for the providing information quality statement will be based on the effective key question rating. This is because this topic area has moved from effective to responsive in the new framework.
Services which have not been rated yet will not get scored as there are no previously published findings. These services will have evidence collected for their quality statement in the first year.
Services which are not rated e.g. dental care, will be assessed under the new framework but will not have scores or ratings published.
Gathering Evidence
As discussed in our previous information CQC will use a range of evidence gathering activities appropriate to the quality statement they are assessing, which will be used to score and rate your service. These will include:
- On-site activity i.e. inspections
- Information CQC collect from national bodies e.g. capacity tracker for adult social care services
- Information CQC collect from providers e.g. PIRs, requested evidence via email
- Feedback CQC receive and their engagement activities e.g. contact with service user, family and professionals the service works with.
How CQC will use evidence in their assessments
CQC will identify and gather evidence relevant to each evidence category, and make a judgement based on the quality statement and the scoring scale, as well as considering:
- That collected evidence is sufficient to cover the scope of the service
- the quality and validity of the evidence.
CQC will continue to access specialist support including from:
- Experts by Experience
- specialist advisors e.g. Infection Prevention and Control nurses
- executive reviewers (colleagues who support on inspections of the well-led key question for NHS trusts).
Assessment teams will access specialists to support them in:
- understanding which evidence to collect
- corroborating the analyse of evidence
- interviewing key staff.
CQC will identify the type of evidence required and collected on:
- the type of service e.g. Learning Disability, GP surgery etc
- the quality statement and relevant evidence category being assessed
- the information CQC already hold about a service e.g. PIR
There isn’t a full list of evidence that fits every service and CQC are likely to need to follow up specific risks or circumstances relevant to the evidence. CQC do not want providers to prepare specific evidence but will use information providers already have.
How CQC will use evidence in their assessments (half way down the page)
Evidence categories
CQC has also provided further information on their website of a list of all of the evidence categories that they will use with each quality statement for different types of services:
Evidence categories by sector group
Ratings posters
If your service is one of the first to have a report and rating published under the new single assessment framework, there won’t be a PDF poster generated on your profile page until early in 2024.
CQC will provide a template for you to use to display your ratings at your premises. As before, you can choose to create your own posters so long as they include the necessary information and these are as visible and clear as the CQC posters.
CQC WhatsApp channel
CQC have launched a new WhatsApp channel where they will be sharing the latest updates on the new regulatory approach.
Subscribe to CQC’s WhatsApp channel
CQC’s new provider portal
In October CQC started to rollout their new provider portal with small groups of invited providers.
To make sure they contact the right people in your organisation, make sure the contact details they hold are up to date.
Local authority assessment update
CQC has updated the local authority assessment work they have been undertaking, which includes the reports from their pilot assessments and starting full local authority assessments. See below link.
Read more about our local authority assessment work
Watch the recording of CQC’s latest webinar
CQC’s latest webinar is on YouTube. This webinar introduced the quality statements and evidence categories, and their role in the new regulatory approach.
It includes examples of quality statements to explore how evidence categories will be used to identify evidence to be used in the assessments.
Their idea is that the webinar and the provider guidance will work together to give providers the information they need to understand the evidence CQC use to assess each of the new quality statements. Watch the CQC webinar here.
Useful information
We hope you find this useful, and if you would like to access other useful information regarding compliance and CQC please view our learning page on our website at:
Topics include:
- Understanding the current guidance about CQC’s six evidence categories
- CQC New framework
- Your guide to environmental sustainability
- 10 preparation tips for mastering the New CQC Assessment Framework
Webinars
You will also be able to access bookings for our webinars, which include:
CQC Compliance: Preparing for the new inspection framework
CQC: The Registered Managers Interview
CQC: New Provider Registration
Coaching and mentoring skills for leaders and managers in social care