Care Quality Commission

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) makes sure local authorities, hospitals, care homes, dental and GP surgeries, homecare agencies and all other care services in England provide people with safe, effective, compassionate and high-quality care, and encourages them to make improvements when necessary.

The CQC does this by inspecting services and publishing the results on its website, to help you make better decisions about the care you receive.

The CQC website is good place to check for information when you are deciding whether to use a particular care service. You can also give feedback if you feel that you or someone you know has received a poor standard of care.

CQC local authority assessments allows them to provide independent assurance to people of their quality of care in their area. CQC are assessing how local authorities meet their duties under Part 1 of the Care Act (2014).

Our final report from the CQC team for Westminster was published today - Friday, 8 November 2024. We were awarded a GOOD rating (75%) and were good in all areas assessed.

Some of the key highlights from the report include:

Feedback received by the CQC was mostly positive from people and unpaid carers about their experiences of assessment, care planning and reviews.
People could easily access information and advice on their rights under the Care Act and ways to meet their care and support needs. This included unpaid carers and people who fund their own care and support.
Positive feedback about the assessment process, people felt listened to, with their considered and support plans tailored to meet their needs.
Positive feedback from The Local Account Group who represented the views and wishes for people and unpaid carers. They felt listened too and were able to influence policy and services run by the local authority. Their suggestions were welcomed, and they felt valued by the senior leadership team.
There’s a commitment to co-production through involving people and unpaid carers in designing services, systems and reviewing practice at all levels. The Local Account Group presented the peoples and unpaid carers voice and participated in the recruitment of senior staff.
Where WCC works in partnership with other agencies, there are clear arrangements for governance, accountability, monitoring, quality assurance and information sharing.
Public health was actively promoting the use of data to inform strategic actions to tackle geographical inequalities.
Health partners felt there was a strong relationship between adult social care and public health.

The published report can be found here: Westminster City Council: local authority assessment - Care Quality Commission.

Our final report from the CQC team for Westminster was published today - Friday, 8 November 2024. We were awarded a GOOD rating (75%) and were good in all areas assessed.

Some of the key highlights from the report include:

Feedback received by the CQC was mostly positive from people and unpaid carers about their experiences of assessment, care planning and reviews.
People could easily access information and advice on their rights under the Care Act and ways to meet their care and support needs. This included unpaid carers and people who fund their own care and support.
Positive feedback about the assessment process, people felt listened to, with their considered and support plans tailored to meet their needs.
Positive feedback from The Local Account Group who represented the views and wishes for people and unpaid carers. They felt listened too and were able to influence policy and services run by the local authority. Their suggestions were welcomed, and they felt valued by the senior leadership team.
There’s a commitment to co-production through involving people and unpaid carers in designing services, systems and reviewing practice at all levels. The Local Account Group presented the peoples and unpaid carers voice and participated in the recruitment of senior staff.
Where WCC works in partnership with other agencies, there are clear arrangements for governance, accountability, monitoring, quality assurance and information sharing.
Public health was actively promoting the use of data to inform strategic actions to tackle geographical inequalities.
Health partners felt there was a strong relationship between adult social care and public health.

The published report can be found here: Westminster City Council: local authority assessment - Care Quality Commission.

The final report from the CQC for RBKC was published on Friday 25th July 2025. RBKC scored 'outstanding' for 5 areas including supporting people to lead heathier lives, equity in experience & outcomes, partnerships & communities, safeguarding, and governance management & sustainability. They scored 'Good' for four areas: assessing needs, care provision, integration & continuity, safe pathways, systems & transitions, and learning improvement & innovation.

Some of the key highlights from the report include:

Positive feedback from residents and unpaid carers with immediate support, no wait lists and timely assessments
Information and advice were easily accessible to diverse groups of people
Voluntary and Community Sector praised proactive work with the community and coproduction evidenced with our work with the LAG and community groups
People experienced a coordinated intervention with housing and health partners.
Robust oversight over placements, staff had the ability to identify solutions to meet local needs despite challenges.
Strategies and delivery models prioritized prevention, especially in safeguarding and early intervention by the reablement team.
Data helped staff to understand performance from an individual, team and organisational level.

The published report can be found here: Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea: local authority assessment - Care Quality Commission

We are immensely proud of the result and thanks to all staff for their support before, during and after our assessment.

Find out more about the Care Quality Commission and its work.

Last updated: 17/11/2025

Previous Page Complaints and feedback to your council Next The Local Government Ombudsman