CQC Registration for Domiciliary Care: Step-by-Step Guide

A Domiciliary Care agency, also called a home care agency, provides personal care to people in their own homes. Personal care is a regulated activity, so you must be registered with the Care Quality Commission before you start.

This guide sets out the process as CQC currently runs it, and the order we recommend working in.

Do you need to register?

If your staff will help people with personal care, such as washing, dressing, eating or taking medicines, in their own homes, you need CQC registration. Providing a regulated activity without it is an offence under section 10 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

You can set up the company, recruit and train staff before you are registered. You cannot start providing personal care until registration is granted.

Step 1: Set up the company and choose your people

CQC registers a provider, which is usually a limited company, and looks closely at the people behind it.

The Nominated Individual is the person your company nominates to supervise how the regulated activity is managed. They are usually a director or senior leader.
The Registered Manager runs the service day to day and is registered with CQC in their own right.
Directors must be fit and proper to hold their role.

In a small agency, one person sometimes holds more than one of these roles. That can work, but CQC will want to see that the person has the time, skills and experience to do each job properly.

Step 2: Decide your location

CQC registers each location from which the regulated activity is managed. For Domiciliary Care, that is your office rather than the homes you visit. Your Statement of Purpose, your forms and your documents all need to name the same location.

Step 3: Write your Statement of Purpose and policies

CQC’s guidance lists the documents every new provider must send:

Statement of Purpose
Complaints policy
Consent policy and procedure
Equality, diversity and human rights policy
Governance and quality assurance policies
Infection prevention and control policy
Medicines management policy
Recruitment policy
Safeguarding policy and procedure
Public and employers’ liability insurance, as a quote or certificate

You may also need extra documents depending on your service. CQC’s guidance says a financial viability statement is not needed from home care agencies, but check the current position when you apply.

CQC is specific about how these documents should look. Each one must show your business name, the person responsible for it, the date it was written and its review date. They must be complete, up to date, tailored to your business and consistent with the service types and people you select in your application. They must not contain personal information about people who use services.

CQC states that it will reject an application if documents are missing, out of date, incorrect or not relevant to your service. Template policies with another provider’s details still in them are a common cause.

Step 4: Complete the provider application

New provider applications are made using CQC’s forms, downloaded from its website. For a Domiciliary Care agency you will normally need:

the new provider registration application form, which covers one location, one Nominated Individual and two partners
the additional information for providers of personal care form
extra forms if you have more locations, partners or Nominated Individuals

Everything is sent to CQC by email, all at the same time. CQC’s guidance is clear that if anything is missing or incorrect, the application will be rejected, and a resubmission counts as a new application that does not keep its place in the queue. If your files are larger than 25 MB, CQC asks you to compress them into ZIP files and send them across numbered emails.

Step 5: The Registered Manager application

Your Registered Manager applies separately, using CQC’s new registered manager application form. CQC currently asks managers for:

an enhanced DBS check countersigned by CQC
a full work history from age 16, with any gaps of more than four weeks explained
evidence of management experience, ideally in a regulated service
copies of qualifications and training (for home care managers, CQC recommends the Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management or an equivalent)
contact details for their GP and last employer

After the application is received, CQC contacts the manager to arrange an interview.

Step 6: Assessment and interviews

CQC assesses your application against the regulations and may come back with questions. The Registered Manager is interviewed, and CQC may also speak to the Nominated Individual.

The interview tests whether the person understands the regulations, your service and your policies. Our guide to fit person interviews covers what to expect and how to prepare.

Answer any queries promptly and make sure your answers match your documents. Inconsistency between the application, the policies and what people say at interview is one of the quickest ways to lose CQC’s confidence.

Step 7: Once you are registered

When CQC grants registration, you receive your certificate and can begin providing personal care within the terms of your registration. From then on:

you pay CQC an annual fee
you must send CQC statutory notifications about certain events
CQC will assess your service, and once you have a rating, you must display it at your office and on your website

Keep your Statement of Purpose up to date. If your service changes, for example you start supporting a new group of people, you may need to tell CQC or apply to change your registration.

Common mistakes that cause rejection or delay

Sending documents in batches. CQC needs everything at the same time.
Template policies. Documents that mention a different service, location or provider name.
Mismatched details. A Statement of Purpose that describes different services or people from the application form.
Missing dates and owners. Policies without a named owner, creation date and review date.
An unprepared manager. A Registered Manager who has not read the policies they will be asked about.

How long does it take?

CQC does not promise a fixed timescale, and waiting times change with demand. What you control is the quality of what you send. A complete, consistent application, with a manager who is ready for interview, gives you the best chance of moving through without being sent back.

Before you apply: a quick checklist

Your company is set up and your Nominated Individual is confirmed
Your Registered Manager has the experience CQC expects and has started their DBS check
You have an office to register as your location
Your Statement of Purpose and all ten core documents are written for your service and dated
Your insurance quote or certificate is ready
The provider form, personal care form and any extra forms are complete
Everything is ready to send to CQC in one go

Official guidance

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Regulator guidance changes, so check the current position before you act, or talk to us about your plans.