This will normally be covered on your initial training and sometimes it can seem quite confusing. Let’s make it simple now.

So, who regulates the care industry?

The care industry is regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). They regulate all the health and social services in England. This includes organisations such as the NHS, local authorities and any voluntary organisations.

It is the job of the CQC to ensure that all the essential quality standards are met wherever care is provided. This is the same whether care is provided in a hospital, care home or private home.

The goal of the CQC is to ensure that better care is provided for people who need it, no matter where they are.

Any organisation which recruits and employs people to care for others must register with the CQC. These organisations are also expected to comply with the ‘Essential Standards for Quality and Safety.’

Any organisation which is registered with the CQC (this would include your agency) is periodically inspected and the results reported back to the CQC. This is to make sure that all the services they provide are ‘safe, effective, caring, responsive to people’s needs and well-led.’

Why is this a good idea?

A report from Age UK’s ‘Later Life in the United Kingdom’ stated that most of the UK residents who are at retirement age would prefer to stay in their own homes as they get older. They wanted to live there for as long as possible.

Live-in care presents a viable option to relocating to a nursing or residential care home, although it also poses a threat in that essential care services might not be available.

For this reason, many people choose live-in care work through an agency which is regulated by the CQC. This ensures that any live-in carer who accepts the placement will work to high standards at all times. They will be reliable and work to a regulated standard.

When you are choosing an agency to work for it is important that they are registered with the CQC because this will reassure you that they are working to the highest standards in the care industry. It also means that they will train you in the best way to work with clients. Your own work standard will be professional and of a high standard.

To sum up

There are many different care companies in the UK that place carers with clients. While most of them are CQC registered, there are some that are not. Even though these agencies may pay more you are best advised to stay away from them and apply to those that are registered.

Not only will you find that an agency who is registered with the CQC to be more professional, but you will also receive better training and support from them.

Tags:

1

Go Back to Previous Page

Live in care jobs