Safe · KLOE 6
Safe staffing
Are there enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff to keep people safe and meet their needs, with strategies to manage demand and capacity safely?
CQC wording, primary care and community services draft V6.0, pages 14 to 16.
Draft, not the current assessment framework
CQC's primary care and community services draft V6.0, 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:
- Workforce capacity and capability (including vacancies, turnover and sickness)
- Safe recruitment (including DBS)
- Staffing levels and skills mix
- Skills and qualifications/revalidation
- Learning, development and competency
- Support, supervision and oversight
- Performance management and appraisal
- Agency staff, volunteers and unpaid carers
How would this apply to your service?
The draft applies one framework across primary care and community services, but useful evidence depends on your service and people.
Source: CQC, Primary care and community services assessment framework, draft V6.0, 19 March 2026, pages 14 to 16. 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
- Recruitment practices are comprehensive and rigorous to ensure that all staff are suitably qualified, experienced and competent to deliver high quality care.
- Staffing levels and skill mix are consistently reviewed to ensure they are safe and enable proactive, personalised care.
- The service has a clear strategy to manage changes in demand and capacity. This is continuously reviewed and is used to anticipate future demand.
- Continually developing the skills, competence and knowledge of staff is recognised as being integral to ensuring high-quality care. Staff are proactively supported and encouraged to acquire new skills, use their transferable skills, and share best practice.
- There is a proactive support and appraisal system for staff. This recognises, prioritises and celebrates the continuous development of skills, competence and knowledge.
Good
- Recruitment practices are rigorous and safe to make sure that all staff, including agency staff and volunteers, are suitably qualified, experienced, competent and able to carry out their role.
- There are appropriate staffing levels and skill mix to meet the needs of people. Where the necessary staffing levels cannot be met, leaders support staff to develop short-term measures to make sure people continue to receive consistently safe, good quality care that meets their needs.
- Leaders understand the impact of fatigue on staff and how it affects the safety of people who use services. They regularly review working hours, rotas, and the environment in which staff work to protect them and their wellbeing.
- Staff receive training appropriate and relevant to their role. Staff at all levels have opportunities to learn and develop their practice.
- Staff receive the support they need to deliver safe care. This includes supervision, oversight, appraisal, development and, where needed, professional revalidation. Staff work within their competencies, and colleagues know these. Poor performance is managed appropriately.
Requires improvement
- Recruitment practices are inconsistent, resulting in members of staff who are not always suitably qualified, experienced or competent to carry out their role.
- There are periods of under-staffing or inappropriate skill mix, which are not addressed quickly. Agency, bank and locum staff are not always used in a way that protects people’s safety.
- There is limited understanding about the impact of fatigue on staff and how it affects the safety of people who use services.
- Staff do not always receive appropriate or timely training. There are few opportunities for staff to learn and develop.
- Systems to ensure staff receive adequate supervision, appraisal and development are ineffective. Poor performance is not always managed appropriately.
Inadequate
- Recruitment practices are unsafe. Staff are not suitably qualified, experienced or competent to deliver safe care.
- Substantial staff shortages and inappropriate skill mix are common. The service does not use agency, bank or locum staff to make sure people continue to receive safe care. Staff fatigue is not considered.
- Staff do not receive appropriate training.
- Staff are not given opportunities to develop, nor do they receive supervision or appraisal. Poor performance is ignored.
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.