Mock CQC inspection checklist for care providers

Governance · October 2026 · 6 minute read

A mock CQC inspection checks your service the way an inspector would: what your records show, what staff and the people you support tell you, and whether the two match. Use the checklist below to run your own, one key question at a time, then rank what you find by risk and fix the most serious things first.

How to use this checklist

• Pick a sample, not everything. Three to five people's care records, the same number of staff files, and a month of medicines records will tell you most of what you need to know.
• Test records against practice. A care plan that says one thing while staff describe another is a finding, even if the paperwork looks perfect.
• Talk to people. Inspectors give real weight to what staff, the people you support and their families say. So should you.
• Use someone with fresh eyes. The person who wrote the care plans is the least likely to spot what is missing from them.

Safe

• Risk assessments are current, specific to the person and reviewed after any change or incident.
• Medicines records are complete, with no unexplained gaps, and errors are reported and learned from.
• Staff can explain how they would recognise and report abuse, and who they would tell.
• Incidents are recorded, reviewed and closed, with actions you can trace.
• Recruitment files show the checks Schedule 3 requires, including an enhanced DBS check, references and a full employment history with gaps explained. Our article on safer recruitment checks covers these in detail.
• There are enough trained staff to cover every visit or shift, and a plan for when you are short.

Effective

• Every person has an assessment of their needs before care starts.
• Consent is recorded, and mental capacity assessments are decision specific where there is doubt.
• Training records match what staff actually do, including delegated clinical tasks, with competency signed off by someone qualified to assess it.
• Staff have regular supervision, and you can show it happened.
• You can show outcomes: what has improved for people since care began.

Caring

• People and families describe staff as kind, respectful and unhurried.
• Care plans are written about the person, in their words where possible, not just about tasks.
• Privacy and dignity are protected in practice, not just in policy.
• People are involved in decisions about their own care, and you can show how.

Responsive

• Care plans reflect people's preferences, routines and what matters to them.
• Complaints are logged, answered in line with your policy, and lead to change where needed.
• Information is given in a way each person can understand.
• Where relevant, end of life wishes are recorded and acted on.

Well-led

• The registered manager knows the service in detail and can explain its risks.
• Audits happen on schedule, find real issues, and lead to actions that are completed.
• Notifications to CQC are made when required and on time.
• The duty of candour is followed when a notifiable safety incident happens. See duty of candour for care providers.
• Staff feel able to raise concerns, and leaders act on them.
• Your statement of purpose still matches the service you actually run.

Turning findings into an action plan

1. Rank each finding by risk. Anything that could harm someone now goes first.
2. Give every action an owner and a date. An action with no owner rarely gets done.
3. Fix the cause, not just the record. If a medicines chart has gaps, find out why before you retrain anyone.
4. Check again. Re-audit the same sample a month later to show the change has stuck.

A note on CQC's assessment approach

CQC is changing how it assesses services, and has said the five key questions and the four ratings will stay. The regulations behind them are not changing either. A check built on the key questions and the regulations stays useful whatever the final framework looks like, but always check CQC's current guidance before an assessment.

How Assure Advisory helps

A checklist tells you what to look for. A mock CQC inspection from Assure Advisory adds an outside view of practice, culture and what people tell us, carried out by people who have been on the other side of the table, with a written report ranked by risk within 10 working days. You can also download our free CQC Evidence Readiness Checklist to work through at your own pace.

Sources

• CQC: The fundamental standards (opens in a new tab)
• CQC: Regulation 17, good governance (opens in a new tab)

Mock CQC inspection