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The Care Quality Commission (CQC) will use a new framework to assess how well local authorities are performing against their duties under Part 1 of the Care Act 2014. This framework was developed through co-production with partners, agencies and people with direct experience of using care and support services.

The assessment framework uses a subset of the quality statements from the overall assessment framework. This is because local authorities are being assessed against a different set of statutory duties to registered providers.

The assessment framework for local authorities comprises 9 quality statements mapped across 4 overall themes.

For each theme we set out:

The I statements and quality statements that we will assess:
- Quality statements are the commitments that local authorities must commit to. Expressed as ‘we statements’, they show what is needed to deliver high-quality, person-centred care.
- I statements are what people expect. They are based on Think Local Act Personal’s ‘Making It Real’ framework.
Sections of the Care Act to which the quality statements relate
Required evidence categories for each quality statement and sources of evidence.

The FOUR domains are as follows:

You can find out about each of those by clicking the links above.

Theme 3: Ensuring Safety

Theme 3: How the local authority ensures safety within the system

This theme covers:

Section 42 safeguarding enquiries
reviews
safe systems
continuity of care.

Safe systems, pathways and transitions

Quality statement

We work with people and our partners to establish and maintain safe systems of care, in which safety is managed, monitored and assured. We ensure continuity of care, including when people move between different services.

When I move between services, settings or areas, there is a plan for what happens next and who will do what, and all the practical arrangements are in place.
I feel safe and am supported to understand and manage any risks.

Summary

Safety is a priority for everyone. There is a strong awareness of the risks to people across their care journeys. The approach to identifying and managing these risks is proactive and effective. The effectiveness of these processes is monitored and managed to keep people safe.
Care and support is planned and organised with people, together with partners, and communities in ways that improve their safety across their care journeys and ensures continuity in care. This includes referrals, admissions and discharge, and where people are moving between services.
The views of people who use services, partners and staff are listened to and taken into account.
Policies and processes about safety are aligned with other key partners who are involved in people’s care journey to enable shared learning and drive improvement.

Related sections of the Care Act

Care Act 2014:

Section 1: Wellbeing principle
Sections 6-7: Cooperation generally and in specific cases
Section 19(3): Power to meet needs for care and support
Section 37(1), (3), (4), (5)(a), (e), (f), and (6) to (15); Section 38(1)(a) and (2) to (8): Continuity of care and support when adult moves
Section 48: Provider Failure (Temporary duty to provide services)
Section 58-65: Transition for child to adult care and support

Required evidence

People’s experience

Direct feedback from:
- people with care and support needs
- unpaid carers
- people who fund or arrange their own care, those close to them and their advocates
Feedback from people obtained by community and voluntary groups. For example:
- advocacy groups
- adult and young person’s carers groups
- faith groups
- groups representing people who are more likely to have a poorer experience of care and poorer outcomes
- people with protected equality characteristics
Feedback that people have sent to the local authority and feedback it has gathered itself through surveys or focus groups
Feedback from CQC’s Give feedback on care facility (if available).
Compliments and complaints
Healthwatch
Case tracking

Feedback from staff and leaders

Council adult social care portfolio holder
Overview and scrutiny committee
Principal social worker
Social work teams
Out-of-hours duty teams
Care provision: Quality monitoring team
Director of adult social services
Director of children’s services
The local authority’s self-assessment of its performance for the quality statement

If available

Staff feedback from the local authority’s own surveys
Peer review

Processes

Safety management systems:
- approach to identifying and managing risks to people across their care journeys
- monitoring the effectiveness in keeping people safe.
Safety during transitions and continuity of care, including
- referrals, admissions and discharge
- where people are moving between services (including children into adulthood, hospital discharge, moving to another local authority and when transitioning between services)
Contingency planning and emergency preparedness for provider failure and disruptions in the provision of care and support
Alignment of safety management policies and processes with other key partners who are involved in people’s care journey to enable shared learning and drive improvement.
Arrangements with health partners to ensure delegated healthcare duties and medicines support provided by social care staff are carried out safely
Information sharing protocols

Feedback from partners

Community and voluntary sector groups, including those representing:
- people who are more likely to have a poorer experience of care and poorer outcomes
- people with protected equality characteristics
- unpaid carers
Care providers
Local health partners
Ambulance and paramedics
Health and wellbeing board
Safeguarding Adults Board
Advocacy providers

If available:

Local Government Social Care Ombudsman
Reports from Ofsted for inspecting local authority children’s services (ILACS)
SEND area review reports
Feedback from other regulators

Outcomes

We will not look at evidence under this category.

Best practice and guidance

Safeguarding

Quality statement

We work with people to understand what being safe means to them as well as with our partners on the best way to achieve this. We concentrate on improving people’s lives while protecting their right to live in safety, free from bullying, harassment, abuse, discrimination, avoidable harm and neglect. We make sure we share concerns quickly and appropriately.

I feel safe and am supported to understand and manage any risks.