Registration of independent health care service (England and Wales)

What this covers

You need to register with the Care Quality Commission or Healthcare Inspectorate to run an independent health care service (eg private hospital or clinic) in England and Wales

It applies in England and Wales. Other UK nations run their own regimes — check the equivalent for the nation you trade in.

Why you need it

This licence is not an administrative preference — it exists because Parliament created it. The power to require it comes from Health and Social Care Act 2008.

What the Act carries

These are the duties, penalties and exemptions our graph holds for Health and Social Care Act 2008 as a whole — the Act behind this licence, not the licence conditions themselves. They show what sort of instrument you are dealing with.

Duties on businesses

18

Penalties

14

Exemptions

6

Duties on businesses under the Act

• Carry on regulated health or social care activity without registration s.10
• Apply to the CQC to register as a health or social care provider s.11
• Ensure your care service is managed by a CQC-registered manager s.13
• Apply to register as a manager for regulated activities s.14
• Fail to comply with registration conditions s.33
• Operate while registration is suspended or cancelled s.34

… and 12 more business duties in the same Act.

What happens if you get it wrong

• Carry on regulated health or social care activity without registration 12 months imprisonment
• Corporate liability for Part 1 offences 12 months imprisonment
• Disclose confidential personal information 2 years imprisonment
• Breach of care quality regulations Unlimited fine
• Fail to comply with registration conditions Unlimited fine

… and 9 more penalties in the same Act.

Exemptions that may take you outside it

• CQC exempt from section 45A reporting in annual reports — The report on how the CQC exercised its functions for the year does not have to cover functions under section …
• Early implementation of CQC decisions via written waiver — Applicant notifies the Commission in writing that they do not intend to appeal before the 28-day period ends
• Exemptions from CQC notice sharing requirements — Cases prescribed by regulations where the Commission is not required to notify external bodies (NHS England, local authorities, etc.)
• Government power to create specific exemptions or conditions for care providers — Specific cases or classes of case defined by the Secretary of State or relevant authorities
• Health in pregnancy grant is exempt from income tax — Receipt of a health in pregnancy grant

… and 1 more exemption in the same Act.

Read our full dossier on Health and Social Care Act 2008

Who issues it

This one does not go to your council. The Care Quality Commission registers providers in England only; in Wales the registration authority is Healthcare Inspectorate Wales under the Care Standards Act 2000, not the CQC.

The national body we hold against it is Care Quality Commission.

Where to apply

Our guidance on this

Everything below is written out in full elsewhere on Guvnor — this page points at it rather than repeating it.

Licences that often go with this one

Businesses in the same activities usually need one or more of these too.

Duty, penalty and exemption labels are Guvnor’s analysis of the enabling instrument, not the instrument itself. Fees, forms and conditions are set by the issuing authority — always check the linked source.

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