| Photograph of Sir Julian Hartley
As the year draws to a close, I want to take the opportunity to firstly say thank you to everyone who has been so welcoming, candid and frank with me during my first month as Chief Executive of CQC. Iâm grateful to everyone who I have met with so far and who have shared their thoughts and reflections with me â I look forward to meeting many more of you in the coming months. Â
Thereâs no doubt that this year has been incredibly challenging for CQC, as well as the health and care system as a whole, but it has been so encouraging to see how many people are willing to work together to support us to be the regulator we all want us to be â supporting health and social care services to provide people with safe, effective, compassionate, high quality care.  We have already started making changes to do this, such as stopping scoring and reporting at evidence category level for provider assessments started after 2 December. One of the main reasons for this being that we have heard that our scoring model is too complex and hard to understand. This is just one of many changes we need to make to urgently improve.  In the new year Iâll be sharing more information on our priorities for the coming months, but the changes we make will definitely be focused on ensuring the regulation we carry out meets its core purpose â to keep people safe and ensure they receive the care they deserve. Iâm absolutely committed to working in partnership with people who use services, health and social care providers and stakeholders to do this.  I want to thank you to you, as health and social care professionals, for everything you do to keep people safe and deliver care, particularly when it isnât easy. Working in health and social care means you donât always get a break over the festive period, but I hope youâre able to take some down time and spend time with loved ones. I look forward to writing to you in 2025 with more updates on how we are working to improve. Illustration of a blue bell and a number 1 above it.
The CQC fees scheme for providers, which covers our costs of provider regulation, will not change next year â in 2025/26. Â
This means that, for many providers, your fees will have remained the same for the last 6 years, unless you have changed your registration â for example, by adding locations or service types.  As in previous years, NHS trusts, NHS GPs and community social care providers may see a change to their fees from April 2025 (up or down), as we update the variables (turnover, list size, number of people using the service) used to calculate their fees.  Since there is no change to our fees scheme, we will not be consulting on fees for provider regulation this year. Illustration of a magnifiying glass with a light bulb in the middle and multiple question marks surrounding the outside of it. The National Quality Board (NQB) has published principles for assessing and managing risks across integrated care systems. The document outlines principles for managing quality risks within integrated care systems, particularly in rapidly changing environments. It supports the delivery of safe, effective, and personalised care while addressing inequalities across health services. The principles sit alongside previously published NQB guidance. An image of a ultrasound machine. The Society of Radiographers (SOR) is calling on sonographer managers across the NHS and independent sectors to participate in the 2024 ultrasound census. The SoR encourages sonographer managers to share their experiences, highlight challenges, and showcase good practices through the census. Input from both NHS and independent providers is crucial for fulfilling Professional Standards Authority (PSA) requirements and shaping the future of sonographer practice. The survey will be open until Tuesday 17 January 2025. In April 2024, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) published a consultation, seeking views on removing making changes to some of CQCâs regulations. Specifically to 1) remove the expiry date of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 and replace it with a 5-yearly review 2) making changes to CQC regulations relating to âtreatment (not first aid) in a sports ground or gymnasiumâ and âtemporary arrangements to deliver medical care (not first aid) at sporting or cultural eventsâ 3) introducing a new requirement to notify CQC of the use of restraint, segregation and seclusion in mental health units. On 18 December, DHSC published their response to that consultation.
We are aware of a scam where a company that claims to be CQC is emailing registered providers selling in-house training for staff on our inspections and how to get a rating of outstanding. The email includes information copied from our website and a fake CQC logo. We never charge a fee for any guidance, webinars and other face-to-face engagement events and we do not offer training for staff. If you are considering investing in training for your staff, you should make sure the training provider is advertised as independent from CQC and let us know of any examples of training companies that claim otherwise. Get ready to make a difference from 24 February 2025 as we launch Share for Better Care Week, a national week of action about helping more people have a stronger voice in their care. Mark your calendars and sign up for our Share for Better Care briefing call on 21 January to find out how you can support our campaign! Let's come together and ask our communities, "Will you share for better care?".
National Voices have recently published a joint blog with Chris Dzikiti about our Share for Better Care campaign, reflecting on the importance of sharing experiences of care, especially for people experiencing health inequalities. Keep up to date with the latest on how we're improving how we work on our website.
The Government have announced an update on the extension to the banning order on puberty blockers. The full details can be found on the GOV.UK website.
GP mythbuster 41: Smartcards, and GP mythbuster 91: Patient safety alerts have been updated on our website.
Cold weather can significantly impact peopleâs health and well-being. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has guidance on reducing risks for people living in care homes or receiving care at home over winter.
The Digital Care Hub is raising awareness across the care sector of how to avoid falling victim to a scam. Check our their informative videos across X and LinkedIn. | 