Powered by
Effortlessly conduct mock inspections, address non-compliance, and achieve top ratings before CQC inspections.
Why Mitti digital checklists?
Free to use for up to 10 users
Eliminate paperwork with digital checklists
Generate reports from completed checklists
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) Inspection is a regular check to ensure safe, effective, caring, responsive, and well-led health and social care services across England. The CQC regulates activities in and assigns ratings to hospitals, care homes, and home-care agencies based on the Health and Social Care Act 2008. Failing CQC Inspections may lead to costly fines and litigation, especially when people are harmed or put in danger.
CQC inspections come in three types: routine (scheduled, regular checks), focused (targeting a specific concern or key question), and themed (examining a particular issue across multiple providers). Inspections can be either announced in advance or unannounced, most often when CQC has concerns about a service.
A CQC inspection checklist helps you and your team prepare for announced or unannounced regulatory checks every 6-12 months. By running it on a workplace operations platform, you can better identify gaps, improve the quality of care you deliver, and raise your rating. Often, this checklist is used alongside broader healthcare compliance software you already use to manage related documentation.
During an inspection, CQC inspectors will look for evidence that matches what you've documented, checking your care plans, training records, and staff practice against the 5 key questions below. For an unannounced visit, make sure your checklist already covers safeguarding records, medicines management, staff rotas and training logs, and up-to-date care plans, so you're never caught scrambling.
With this checklist, you can:
See at a glance where your service stands across all 5 key questions
Capture photo evidence the moment you spot non-compliance
Close gaps faster by assigning corrective actions in real-time
Sign off inspections digitally, with no paperwork to chase
Share a finished CQC report the moment your inspection ends
CQC organizes every inspection around 5 key questions: is the service safe, effective, caring, responsive, and well-led? Since January 2024, CQC assesses these through its Single Assessment Framework, using 34 Quality Statements rather than the older Key Lines of Enquiry (KLOE) model this page may have referenced previously. A further framework revision is in consultation as of mid-2026, with rollout expected toward the end of the year — worth revisiting this section again once that's confirmed.
Safe: “Are people protected from abuse and avoidable harm?”
Effective: “Do people’s care, treatment, and support achieve good outcomes; promote a good quality of life; and is based on the best available evidence?”
Caring: “Does the service involve and treat people with compassion, kindness, dignity, and respect?”
Responsive:"Do services meet people’s needs?”
Well-led: “Do the leadership, management, and governance of the organization assure the delivery of high-quality and person-centered care, support learning and innovation, and promote an open and fair culture?”
CQC inspectors rate each of the 5 key questions and give an overall rating for the service. Their report explains what they found, what's working well, and what needs to improve.
A Good or Outstanding rating means the service meets, or exceeds, CQC's standards across most or all of the 5 key questions. Providers rated Outstanding are recognized for innovative, high-quality care that goes beyond compliance. CQC highlights these examples publicly as sector-wide best practice.
A Requires Improvement rating means the service falls short of one or more regulations. Common triggers include gaps in staff training records, inconsistent care planning, or incomplete safeguarding documentation.
The care provider must submit a report detailing how they'll improve, identifying who's responsible and by when. This report is due within 7-28 days. CQC inspectors may follow up with a visit or phone call to confirm the fix.
If the breach of a regulation is more serious or a compliance action has not been effective, CQC inspectors will take enforcement action. According to CQC's current guidance on enforcement and regulations, the care provider can appeal or make written representations about any enforcement action. However, they must provide evidence that the health and social service meets regulations during follow-up inspections within 6 months.
Here is a templated CQC inspection report in use for your reference:
Search, filter, and customize 60,000+ templates across industries and use cases.
Powered by
This CQC compliance checklist is built according to the Provider Compliance Assessment by the Care Quality Commission. Use this checklist to easily determine the compliance of a health or social care service to fundamental CQC standards such as Outcome 2 (Regulation 18): Consent to Care and Treatment, Outcome 12 (Regulation 21): Requirements Relating to Workers, and 14 other outcomes.
Powered by
This customizable CQC inspection template enables health or social care facilities to easily determine their compliance to any of the 16 key essential standards. Simply select the outcome(s) to be inspected and indicate the evidence for compliance such as observation of staff and service users, documentation, and/or speaking to staff, service users, family members, and carers.
Powered by
This CQC assessment aims to evaluate the medicine management quality of a health or social care facility before CQC inspections. Use this CQC assessment to determine compliance to Outcome 9 (Regulation 13) and efficiently inspect clinic rooms, medicine waste bins, and controlled drugs. General questions concerning stock receipts, gas cylinders, and trained staff are also included in this CQC assessment.
Powered by
This CQC checklist is used to ensure proper cleanliness and infection control in all areas of the hospital or care home prior to CQC inspections. Easily determine compliance to Outcome 8 (Regulation 12), improve the overall cleanliness and infection control of the health or social care facility, and assign corrective actions to members of the organisation with this CQC checklist.
