Effective · KLOE 4
Supporting people to live healthier lives
Are people supported to manage their own health and wellbeing and, where the service is responsible, how does it improve the health of its population?
CQC wording, mental health care draft, pages 33 to 35.
Draft, not the current assessment framework
CQC's mental health care draft, published March 2026. The current quality statements remain in use.
CQC draft scope
What this proposed KLOE covers
Scope of this key line of enquiry and topic areas include:
- Population health and prevention (including health inequalities)
- Identification and early health interventions
- Supporting access to healthcare services – GP, dentists, secondary care, social care, etc
- Healthier lives promotion
- Physical activity
- Care Education and Treatment Reviews
- Population data used to target prevention
- Mental Health Act empowerment principle
How would this apply to your service?
The draft applies one framework across mental health care, but useful evidence depends on your service and people.
Source: CQC, Mental health care assessment framework, draft, 19 March 2026, pages 33 to 35. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
CQC draft rating characteristics
How the draft describes each rating
These are CQC's draft characteristics. CQC says rating characteristics guide judgements, they are not a mechanical checklist.
Outstanding
- Staff develop a deep understanding of people’s preferences, strengths, cultures, protected equality characteristics and lived experience to deliver genuinely person-centred care and treatment. They empower people and, where appropriate, those close to them, to manage their health and wellbeing, access wider healthcare services and make informed, healthier choices.
- The service fosters an open, inclusive and psychologically safe culture, using proactive, equity-driven approaches to recognise diverse needs, remove barriers, and embed preventative practice through continuous learning and innovation.
- Population health data is used to drive prevention and improve outcomes across communities. Staff work proactively with external health-promotion partners, sharing insights across neighbourhoods and creating seamless opportunities for people to develop skills, improve wellbeing and access community resources that aid recovery.
Good
- People are empowered and supported to manage their own health, care, treatment and wellbeing needs by staff who understand their individual needs and preferences.
- People are supported to review their health and wellbeing needs, and to access other health or social care services.
- People are encouraged and supported to make healthier choices to help promote, and maintain, their health and wellbeing.
- The service focuses on identifying preventative approaches to improve long-term health and positive outcomes. When risks to people’s health and wellbeing are detected, people are supported to prevent deterioration.
- The service considers and acts on health inequalities and barriers that may affect different people when taking preventative approaches.
- The service uses population health data to drive proactive, preventative action that improves people’s outcomes and acts on health inequalities.
- Where people are subject to the Mental Health Act 1983 (MHA), decisions made about care and treatment comply with the empowerment and involvement guiding principle and the MHA Code of Practice. Any departure from guidance is clearly justified and risk assessed.
Requires improvement
- People are not consistently supported to manage their own health, care, treatment and wellbeing needs. Staff do not always understand their needs and preferences.
- People are not consistently or regularly supported to review their health and wellbeing needs where appropriate and necessary. They do not always receive support to access other healthcare services.
- People are not always encouraged and supported to make healthier choices to help promote and maintain their health and wellbeing.
- There is limited focus on prevention and early identification of health needs to improve long-term health outcomes. When risks to people’s health and wellbeing are detected, they are not always supported to prevent deterioration.
- Where relevant, population health data is inconsistently understood to drive preventative action or improve outcomes.
- Decisions made about care and treatment do not always adhere to the Mental Health Act and Code of Practice. Deviation from guidance is not always clearly recorded.
Inadequate
- People are not supported to manage their own health, care, treatment and wellbeing needs. Staff do not know their needs and preferences.
- People are not supported or involved in regularly reviewing their health and wellbeing needs where appropriate and necessary. They do not receive support to access other healthcare services.
- People are not encouraged or supported to make healthier choices to help promote and maintain their health and wellbeing.
- There is no focus on prevention and early identification of health needs. Staff are reactive, rather than proactive in supporting people to live healthier lives, and those who need extra support are not identified. Risks to people’s health and wellbeing are not detected.
- Where relevant, services have no awareness of, or do not use population health data to drive preventative action or improve outcomes.
- Decisions made about care and treatment do not comply with the Mental Health Act and Code of Practice or other legislation.
Want to know how your service would fare?
Book a mock inspection run against the draft KLOEs, or call 020 8090 5346 to speak to one of our experts.