The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has published its 2025 Progress Statement, setting out the steps taken over the last year to rebuild the organisation and strengthen the regulation of health and adult social care services.

The statement outlines tangible operational improvements, structural changes, and a clear direction of travel into 2026 and beyond. 

From a provider perspective, this update is significant. It signals a shift away from regulatory recovery and toward sustained delivery, with clear implications for inspection activity, registration, assessment outcomes, and ongoing regulatory engagement. Below, we summarise CQC’s key areas of progress, alongside our response based on direct experience supporting providers across the sector throughout 2025. 

Clearing Stuck Assessments 

CQC states that at the beginning of 2025, around 500 assessment reports were awaiting processing and publication. This backlog had contributed to prolonged uncertainty for providers following inspection activity and undermined confidence in the timeliness of regulatory outcomes. CQC confirms that this backlog has now been reduced to just four outstanding assessments. 

This improvement reflects changes to internal assurance processes, prioritisation of delayed reports, and improvements in how inspection findings move through internal review and publication stages. 

Our response 

Throughout 2025, we have seen a marked improvement in CQC processing times when working with clients following inspection. Reports are being issued more quickly, correspondence is clearer, and outcomes are being communicated within more reasonable timeframes. This has enabled providers to move into structured improvement planning sooner, rather than remaining in prolonged periods of uncertainty. 

Carrying Out More Assessments 

CQC confirmed that in April 2025 it set a target to publish 9,000 assessments by September 2026. To date, 4,308 assessments have already been published, placing the regulator ahead of its stated trajectory. CQC also reports that in November 2025, it completed 50 percent more assessments than in November 2024, demonstrating a sustained increase in inspection and assessment activity. 

This reflects increased inspection capacity, improved deployment of inspectors, and a renewed focus on routine regulatory delivery across health and adult social care. 

Our response 

We have seen a far more active CQC throughout 2025, with a clear increase in inspection activity across sectors and shorter lead-in times. Alongside this, we have supported a higher number of providers following inspection where enforcement action has been taken. This reinforces that increased inspection volume has been accompanied by firmer regulatory challenge. 

Reducing Registration Delays 

CQC reports that it has increased the number of registration inspectors to address application backlogs and delivered a pilot programme to improve the homecare registration process. The pilot focused on speed, clearer guidance, and improved decision-making. These changes are now being rolled out across other sectors. 

CQC has also begun testing a simplified registration form and improving online guidance to create a more transparent and navigable registration experience. 

Our response 

We have seen a reduction in waiting times for new registrations during 2025 compared with previous years. However, this has been accompanied by a higher level of scrutiny. Applications are being assessed in greater depth, with stronger challenge around governance arrangements, leadership capability, staffing models, and service viability. We continue to support providers with registrations to ensure applications are robust, well evidenced, and aligned with current regulatory expectations. 

Improving How Information of Concern Is Handled 

CQC reports a reduction in the backlog of information-of-concern cases, including those previously raised with the Health and Social Care Committee. Improvements have been made to internal triage processes, assurance mechanisms, and case closure arrangements, supported by new internal guidance. 

Our response 

We are seeing information-of-concern cases progress more quickly and with clearer regulatory direction. Providers should expect concerns to be assessed and actioned promptly, reinforcing the importance of effective incident management, timely escalation, and demonstrable learning and governance oversight. 

Re-Establishing a Credible Regulatory Structure 

CQC has restructured into operational inspectorates aligned to sector expertise, led by Chief Inspectors across Primary Care and Community Services, Hospitals, Adult Social Care and Integrated Care, and Mental Health. This structure is intended to place sector knowledge at the centre of regulation, improve consistency, and strengthen leadership accountability. 

Our response 

We have seen this change translate into greater consistency across inspections we have supported providers with. The implementation of the Single Assessment Framework and related initiatives has reduced variability in inspection approach and expectation. Our Mock Inspections are conducted in line with the Single Assessment Framework to reflect how inspections are now being delivered in practice. 

Strengthening the Senior Leadership Team 

During 2025, CQC appointed a new Chair, new Non-Executive Directors, a Chief Digital, Data and Registration Officer, and an Executive Director of Finance and Corporate Services. CQC states that these appointments provide the specialist leadership required to rebuild credibility and support sustained organisational improvement. 

Our response 

Stronger senior leadership provides greater organisational stability and clearer strategic direction. For providers, this is likely to translate into more confident regulatory decision-making and fewer delays driven by internal uncertainty. 

Improving the Assessment Framework 

CQC acknowledges concerns raised through external reviews and stakeholder feedback regarding its assessment framework and inspection methodology. Throughout 2025, CQC engaged extensively with providers, stakeholders, and the public. Over 1,600 responses were received through the Better regulation, better care consultation, informing refinements to frameworks, inspection approaches, and rating decisions. 

Our response

We have seen CQC adapt its application of the Single Assessment Framework over the course of the year, with clearer expectations emerging around quality statements, evidence requirements, and governance assurance. Providers should continue to align closely with the current framework and ensure evidence reflects lived practice rather than policy alone. 

Clear Data, Stronger Regulation

CQC reports ongoing work to improve data accuracy, accessibility, and use across the organisation, strengthening internal data literacy and ensuring colleagues have appropriate tools to support regulatory decision-making. Further engagement with providers and stakeholders is planned during 2026. 

Our response

Data is increasingly central to how regulatory activity is targeted and prioritised. Providers should ensure that data submitted to CQC and other bodies is accurate, consistent, and supported by effective governance oversight, as discrepancies are more likely to trigger regulatory attention. 

Looking Ahead

CQC has set out a sequenced improvement plan for 2026 to 2028, including redesigning the regulatory framework, testing new methodologies and technology, improving digital systems and the provider portal, and continuing to strengthen registration processes across sectors. 

The Progress Statement signals a move away from recovery activity toward sustained regulatory delivery. Providers should expect increased inspection activity, clearer expectations, and firmer regulatory decision-making as these changes continue to embed. 

At HLTH Compliance, we continue to support providers to navigate this evolving regulatory environment, strengthen governance and assurance, and remain confident and regulator-ready as expectations continue to sharpen.