CQC Mandatory Training for Care Staff: A Manager’s Guide
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CQC Mandatory Training for Care Staff: A Manager’s Guide
Plan staff training. Track progress. Demonstrate competence.
Care managers need to identify the training each member of staff requires, check they can apply it safely and keep clear records of completion and competence. Requirements vary with staff responsibilities, the care provided and the needs of the people using your service. This guide helps managers of CQC-regulated services in England plan relevant training, choose online courses and organise evidence for audits and inspections.
What is CQC mandatory training?
“CQC mandatory training” is a common term for the learning staff need to work safely in services regulated by the Care Quality Commission. There is no single course bundle that automatically meets every service’s requirements.
Regulation 18 requires staff to receive the support, training, professional development, supervision and appraisal necessary for their duties. Providers must prepare staff for their roles through induction and, where appropriate, supervise them until they demonstrate the competence needed to work unsupervised. Care Quality Commission
Your training plan should therefore connect each person’s learning to their actual work. A care worker providing medicines support will need different preparation from an administrator, and a homecare service will need to address risks that differ from those in a residential home.
Statutory and mandatory training: what is the difference?
Statutory training arises from legal requirements. Mandatory training is learning your organisation or commissioners determine is essential for safe service delivery. The two can overlap.
Use relevant legislation, current guidance, commissioner requirements and your service’s risk assessments to decide what staff need. skillsforcare.org.uk
Which training topics should care managers consider?
Use this table as a planning starting point. Match the course content and level to each role; selecting a topic does not establish that one course meets every requirement.
| Training topic | Who to consider it for | What managers should check | Relevant Caredemy learning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safeguarding adults | Staff working with or supporting adults | Staff know how to recognise concerns and follow local reporting procedures; depth reflects responsibilities. | Safeguarding Adults Level 1 |
| Infection prevention and control | Care staff and relevant cleaning, domestic and support staff | Learning covers the tasks and infection risks in your service. | Infection Prevention and Control Level 2 |
| Health and safety | Staff across the service, with content suited to their work | Staff understand workplace hazards, reporting and emergency procedures. | Health and Safety Awareness |
| Fire safety | Staff across the service | Combine awareness learning with local procedures, evacuation arrangements and relevant practice. | Fire Safety Awareness |
| Moving and handling people | Staff who assist people to move or transfer | Arrange practical preparation and assessment for the techniques and equipment they use. | Moving and Handling Patients |
| Basic life support and first aid | Staff identified through service needs and your first-aid needs assessment | Select appropriate training and practical assessment; online knowledge learning alone does not establish practical competence. | Basic Life Support |
| Medicines support | Staff whose duties include medicines | Match learning to their medicines responsibilities, local procedures and competence assessments. | Control and Administration of Medicines Level 2 |
| Mental capacity and consent | Staff involved in care, support and related decisions | Staff understand their responsibilities and know when to seek advice. | Mental Capacity Act |
| Food safety | Staff handling or preparing food | Select content appropriate to food duties and the setting. | Food Safety and Hygiene Level 2 |
| Equality, diversity and inclusion | Staff across the service | Connect learning to respectful care, communication and workplace conduct. | Equality, Diversity and Human Rights |
| Data protection and confidentiality | Staff handling personal information | Check understanding of secure records, information sharing and reporting concerns. | GDPR |
| Learning disability and autism | Staff in CQC-regulated services, at a level appropriate to their role | Assess the training against the legal requirement and the Oliver McGowan Code of Practice. | See the guidance below before choosing training. |
Also consider child safeguarding, lone working, dementia, nutrition, end-of-life care and specialist or clinical skills where relevant to staff duties and the people supported.
For setting-specific guidance, read our mandatory training requirements for care homes.
Learning disability and autism training
CQC-registered providers must ensure staff receive learning disability and autism training appropriate to their role, including how to interact with autistic people and people with a learning disability. This applies across regulated services, including services that are not specialist learning disability or autism providers.
The government recommends the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism. CQC considers the associated Code of Practice when assessing whether training meets the requirement.
A general awareness course should not be assumed to satisfy the full requirement. Check the content, delivery and role level against the Code, and record how you selected appropriate training. cqc.org.uk
How do training requirements vary by role?
Start with the job description, then consider the tasks staff carry out and the needs of the people they support.
- Care workers: connect learning to daily care, safeguarding, infection prevention, communication and any moving or medicines duties.
- Nurses and staff performing specialist tasks: add training, supervision and competence assessment for the clinical activities they undertake.
- Managers and supervisors: include the skills needed to oversee training, assess practice, investigate gaps and support staff development.
- Domestic, catering and administrative staff: select learning relevant to their work, contact with people using the service and information-handling responsibilities.
- Agency and bank staff: verify previous learning and competence, address gaps and provide induction to your service’s procedures.
Record why training is required for each role. Avoid allocating an identical package to everyone without checking whether it covers their duties.
Choosing online courses and training bundles
Online courses can support induction, refresher learning and staff knowledge development. Choose them by learning outcomes and role relevance, then identify any additional practical training or workplace assessment needed.
You can:
- Browse statutory and mandatory training courses to select individual topics.
- View the adult social care training bundle and check its included courses against your training plan.
- Explore the Care Certificate course for knowledge learning alongside workplace induction and assessment.
The Care Certificate has 16 standards. Completing online learning alone does not complete the Care Certificate: the employer must ensure the required knowledge and skills have been assessed and signed off appropriately. skillsforhealth.org.uk
Get help planning Team Training
Track completion and competence separately
A training matrix helps you see who needs which learning, what has been completed and what needs attention. Include:
- Staff name, role and branch or service.
- Required topic and course or training level.
- Completion date and next review or refresher date.
- Practical assessment status, where applicable.
- Any outstanding action, responsible person and deadline.
Keep course completion and practical competence as separate fields. This makes it easier to identify someone who has passed an online assessment but still needs observed practice or sign-off.
For example, a worker completing medicines learning may still need supervised practice and assessment before providing medicines support independently. CQC’s medicines guidance treats training and competence as connected responsibilities, with learning needs reviewed when practice or safety concerns arise. Care Quality Commission
How often should training be refreshed?
There is no single annual renewal rule for every topic. Use current topic guidance, legal and contractual requirements, service risks and competence checks to set review dates.
Review learning sooner when duties, equipment or people’s needs change, or an incident identifies a gap. Skills for Care’s statutory and mandatory training guide gives topic-specific refresher considerations. skillsforcare.org.uk
Manager checklist: organise your training evidence
Use this practical checklist for routine reviews and inspection preparation. It is a suggested way to organise your records, rather than a prescribed CQC filing format.
| Evidence to organise | Check before your review |
|---|---|
| Training needs assessment | Can you explain why each role needs its allocated learning? |
| Current training matrix | Does it include current staff, new starters and relevant agency or bank workers? |
| Completion records and certificates | Can you retrieve records and link them to the correct worker and topic? |
| Induction records | Do they show preparation for your service’s procedures and the person’s duties? |
| Practical competence assessments | Are relevant observations, assessor details, dates and decisions recorded? |
| Supervision and development records | Are learning needs discussed and follow-up actions documented? |
| Refresher and review schedule | Are upcoming reviews visible, with a reason for the chosen intervals? |
| Training gaps and action plans | Does each gap have an owner, deadline and any necessary supervision or task restriction? |
| Learning disability and autism training records | Can you explain the role level selected and how the training meets the requirement? |
| Evidence of improvement | Can you show how learning or assessment addressed a practice concern? |
As a useful spot check, choose one worker and trace their role, required training, completion records and relevant competence assessments. Then check an outstanding gap to see whether the action plan is being followed.
Manage staff training with Caredemy
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Features include:
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Use your online training reports alongside induction, supervision and workplace assessment records to maintain a fuller picture of staff development.
CQC Mandatory Trainign FAQ
Does CQC prescribe the same training for every care worker?
No. Training must be appropriate to the duties staff perform and the needs of people using the service. Managers should identify role-specific requirements and review them when responsibilities or care needs change.
Are Caredemy courses CQC approved?
Caredemy provides CPD-accredited learning to support staff development. CPD accreditation is separate from CQC regulation. A course certificate does not establish that a service meets all regulatory requirements; managers must select suitable learning and assess relevant competence.
What training should new care staff complete?
Start with an induction that prepares them for their role and your service. Identify relevant mandatory, statutory and specialist learning, consider previous experience and arrange supervision while skills develop. The Care Certificate can support induction for staff new to care.
Can mandatory care training be completed online?
Many knowledge elements can be learned online. Tasks involving practical skills may also require hands-on training, supervised practice and assessment. Choose the delivery method according to the topic and the worker’s responsibilities.
Is a course certificate enough to demonstrate competence?
It records completion of the course and its assessment. For practical tasks, managers may also need evidence that staff can perform safely, such as observed practice and recorded competence decisions.
Does all mandatory training need annual renewal?
No universal annual schedule applies to every topic. Set topic-specific intervals using current guidance and your service’s requirements, and act earlier where risks or competence concerns change.
Does a learning disability and autism awareness course meet the legal requirement?
Do not assume it does. Providers should check training against the role-appropriate requirement and the Oliver McGowan Code of Practice, including the content and delivery standards.
Does this CQC training guide apply across the UK?
CQC regulates health and social care in England. Providers in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland should use the requirements of their own regulator and relevant national guidance.
Choose training that fits your care service
Build your programme around staff duties and the people you support. Choose relevant courses, arrange practical assessment where needed and review the records regularly so gaps are identified and addressed.