Registering a new adult social care service in England is a paperwork exercise with a judgement at the end of it: CQC has to be satisfied that you can meet the fundamental standards from day one. This guide sets out the sequence, what you actually have to produce, and where applications commonly come unstuck.
1. Decide whether you need to register, and for what
Registration is activity-based. You register to carry on one or more regulated activities as defined in Schedule 1 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, at one or more locations.
Most adult social care providers register for one or both of the following:
Personal care — help with washing, dressing, eating, toileting or medication provided in the place where a person lives. This covers domiciliary care, supported living and most complex care packages.
Accommodation for persons who require nursing or personal care — care homes with or without nursing, where accommodation and care are provided together as a package.
Treatment of disease, disorder or injury — relevant where clinical treatment is delivered, for example by nurses in a nursing home or a complex care service.
2. Choose your legal entity and the people CQC will assess
You apply as an individual, a partnership or an organisation. If you register a limited company, the company is the provider and CQC will assess the fitness of its directors under Regulation 5, the fit and proper persons requirement for directors.
Unless you are a registered individual providing the care yourself, you must also nominate a registered manager and a nominated individual. Both are assessed for fitness: identity, right to work, an enhanced DBS check obtained through CQC's countersignature route, qualifications, employment history with explanations for gaps, references and health declaration.
3. Write the statement of purpose
Your statement of purpose is a required document under Regulation 12 of the CQC (Registration) Regulations 2009 and it frames everything else. It sets out your aims and objectives, the services you provide, the needs you intend to meet, the people you will support — including age ranges and the conditions you can safely support — and the addresses of your locations.
Be precise and be honest about scope. If you write that you support people with complex behaviours that challenge or tracheostomy care, CQC will expect competence, staffing and clinical oversight to match. Narrow it now and vary your registration later.
4. Build the evidence pack before you apply
Applications stall on missing documents. Have these ready and consistent with each other:
Policies and procedures covering safeguarding, mental capacity and consent, medicines, infection prevention and control, recruitment and DBS, complaints, whistleblowing, health and safety, business continuity, data protection and duty of candour.
A staffing plan showing how you will cover care hours safely, plus your induction and training programme mapped to the Care Certificate.
Quality assurance and governance arrangements: audits, spot checks, supervision, competency assessments and how you use feedback.
A financial viability statement or forecast, and proof of the right to use each location.
For care homes, evidence about the premises: fire risk assessment, planning use class, environmental health, and layout suitability.
5. Submit through the CQC provider portal
New provider applications are made through the CQC provider portal. You create an account, complete the provider application, and separately complete the registered manager application — the manager submits their own part, so start it early.
After submission an inspector or registration assessor reviews the application and will normally hold an interview with the nominated individual and the registered manager. Expect to be asked how you will meet each of the five key questions in practice, how you will keep people safe in the first weeks, and what you would notify CQC about.
6. Decision, conditions and what happens next
CQC may grant registration, grant it with conditions, or propose to refuse. Conditions commonly limit the regulated activities, the location, or the number of people you may support. If CQC proposes to refuse or to impose conditions you did not ask for, you have the right to make written representations before the decision is finalised, and then a right of appeal to the First-tier Tribunal.
Once registered, the clock starts on your first assessment. New services are usually assessed within the first year, and CQC will look for the systems you described in your application actually operating — audits completed, supervisions happening, care plans reviewed, notifications submitted.
Why applications get refused or delayed
The registered manager cannot demonstrate the required knowledge, or does not hold or is not working towards a Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management for Adult Care.
The statement of purpose claims a scope the staffing, training or clinical oversight cannot support.
Policies are generic templates that contradict the statement of purpose or name the wrong service.
Gaps in employment history or DBS issues that are not explained up front.
No credible financial plan, which raises Regulation 13 sustainability concerns for care homes.
Common questions
Who needs to register with CQC?
Any individual, partnership or organisation carrying on a regulated activity in England must register with the Care Quality Commission. For adult social care this most often means personal care, and accommodation for persons who require nursing or personal care. Introductory agencies that only match workers to clients, and services where the worker is employed directly by the person receiving care, are generally outside registration — but the test is what the service actually does, not what it is called.
How long does CQC registration take?
CQC aims to decide new provider applications within about 10 weeks of a complete submission, but in practice many applications take longer, particularly where information is missing or an interview is needed. Time spent preparing your statement of purpose, policies and registered manager application before you submit is the single biggest factor in avoiding delay.
How much does it cost to register with CQC?
There is no fee to submit a registration application. Once registered you pay an annual fee set by CQC's published fees scheme, which varies by service type and size — for example, community social care fees are banded by the number of service users, and residential fees by the number of locations and beds. Check the current fees scheme on cqc.org.uk, as the bands are reviewed each year.
Can I start providing care before I am registered?
No. Carrying on a regulated activity without registration is a criminal offence under the Health and Social Care Act 2008. Do not accept clients, take referrals or start delivering personal care until your registration certificate is issued.
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