Website of the Department of Health

Care Quality Commission

The regulation of health and adult social care is currently carried out by the Commission for Healthcare, Audit and Inspection (known as the Healthcare Commission) and the Commission for Social Care Inspection.  The Mental Health Act Commission currently has monitoring functions with regard to the operation of the Mental Health Act 1983.  The legislation will replace these three bodies and create a single, integrated regulator for health and adult social care - the Care Quality Commission.

The Bill defines the new Commission’s functions in assuring safety and quality, performance assessment of commissioners and providers, monitoring the operation of the Mental Health Act and ensuring that regulation and inspection activity across health and adult social care is co-ordinated and managed.

The new system will enable a joined up regulation for health and social care, helping to ensure better outcomes for the people who use services.  There are already many good examples of integrated health and social care delivery so the creation of a single regulatory system will fit with this. 

Health and social care providers - including, for the first time, NHS providers - will be required to register with the new regulator in order to provide services.  The registration requirements that all providers must meet will be consistent across both health and adult social care and will be the subject of a forthcoming consultation. Focussing regulation on the levels of safety and quality that those who use services care most about will help ensure that patients, users and vulnerable groups are protected. 

For staff working in provider organisations, the new regulatory system will provide a much clearer system of exactly which requirements they must meet in order to provide services.  The risk-based approach means that regulation activity will be targeted where action is required. 

The Bill gives the Commission a wider range of enforcement powers along with flexibility on how, and when to use them.  This will allow the regulator greater powers to achieve compliance with registration requirements - including requirements relating to infection control. The Commission will be able to apply specific conditions to respond to specific risks - such as requiring a ward or service to be closed until safety requirements met, as well as being able to suspend or de-register services where absolutely necessary.   

Bringing the functions of the Mental Health Act Commission into the remit of the Care Quality Commission will strengthen the monitoring of the Mental Health Act, and offer increased oversight of the treatment of patients subject to compulsory detention.

Consultation

The Department published the consultation document The Future Regulation of Health and Adult Social Care in England, on 27th November 2006, and the consultation ran until 28th February 2007.

The Department’s response to the consultation was published in October 2007:

• The future regulation of health and adult social care in England - response to consultation