Healthcare & Social Care

Which health and care rules apply to your business

Health and care businesses are regulated twice over: the service registers with a care regulator (CQC in England, with separate regulators in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland — and Ofsted for children's social care), and the professionals who deliver it register with their own statutory regulator (GMC, NMC, GDC, GPhC, GOC or HCPC). Find your provider type below, then follow the route that matches.

UK-wide
On this page
UK-wide

Related guides in CQC Registration

Regulation in this sector follows the activity, not the premises. In England, providing a "regulated activity" — treating patients, providing personal or nursing care with accommodation, or personal care in people's own homes — requires registration with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) before you start. Children's homes, fostering agencies and supported accommodation for looked-after 16 and 17-year-olds register with Ofsted instead. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland each have their own regulators and registration processes.

On top of service registration, every regulated health profession has its own statutory register — doctors (GMC), nurses, midwives and nursing associates (NMC), dentists and dental care professionals (GDC), pharmacists (GPhC in Great Britain, PSNI in Northern Ireland), optometrists and dispensing opticians (GOC) and fifteen allied health professions (HCPC). Using a protected title while unregistered is a criminal offence — and for some professions, such as dentistry and sight testing, practising itself is restricted to registrants.

Where to start

  1. 1

    GP practices, dental practices, clinics, hospitals and pharmacies

    Follow "Set up and run a regulated health practice" for registering the service (CQC for most practices; GPhC premises registration for pharmacies), professional registration of your staff, medicines and controlled drugs, and health data duties.

  2. 2

    Care homes, nursing homes, domiciliary care and children's homes

    Follow "Run a care home or other residential care service" for registration with CQC or Ofsted, the registered manager, enhanced DBS checks, mental capacity and safeguarding duties.

  3. 3

    Registering the service itself

    Follow "Register with the Care Quality Commission (CQC)" for the England application step by step, or "Social care registration and regulators" for the four-nation picture.

  4. 4

    Registering your professionals

    Follow "Healthcare professional registration requirements" for GMC, NMC, GDC, GPhC, GOC and HCPC registration, fees and revalidation.

  5. 5

    Operating in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland

    Follow "Healthcare regulation across the UK nations" — then the dedicated Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland registration guides. Social care registers with the Care Inspectorate, CIW or RQIA; independent healthcare with Healthcare Improvement Scotland, HIW or RQIA.

  6. 6

    Every provider: data, infection control and annual compliance

    Follow "Data protection for healthcare providers", "Infection prevention and control for healthcare providers" and the "Healthcare provider annual compliance checklist".

The regulators by nation

Service regulation is devolved. England splits health and adult social care (CQC) from children's social care (Ofsted); Scotland and Wales each split independent healthcare from social care; Northern Ireland combines both in one regulator.

What sits alongside registration

Whichever route applies, expect the same supporting duties: enhanced DBS checks (or PVG in Scotland, AccessNI in Northern Ireland) for staff in regulated activity, employers' liability insurance, fire safety, special-category health data protection, and — in England — the CQC fundamental standards, including the duty of candour. The identity guides above route each of these to its dedicated guide.

Official sources

The service regulators for health and social care.