From 34 Quality Statements to 24 KLOEs: What’s Actually Changing in the 2026 CQC Framework

On 24 March 2026, CQC published four draft sector-specific assessment frameworks. For adult social care providers, this marks a major reset.

The Single Assessment Framework is being replaced. The 34 quality statements are becoming 24 Key Lines of Enquiry, scoring is being removed, and rating characteristics are returning.

The consultation closes at 5pm on 12 June 2026. Pilots are expected through summer, with the new framework due to go live towards the end of 2026.

For registered managers, nominated individuals and quality leads, the real question is simple: what needs to change in your service before inspectors start using the new framework?

Why is CQC changing the framework again?

Short answer: the Single Assessment Framework didn't work.

Three independent reviews (Penny Dash on operational effectiveness, Mike Richards on the framework itself, and the Care Provider Alliance on how it landed in practice) all reached the same conclusion: the SAF was too generic, the scoring model lacked transparency, and providers were left guessing what good actually looked like.

CQC listened. The new framework is essentially a return to the pre-SAF structure — sector-specific frameworks, KLOEs, and rating characteristics — refined with what's been learned since 2024. It's not a revolution. It's a restoration.

The three big changes

1. Sector-specific frameworks replace the "one size fits all" approach

The Single Assessment Framework tried to cover hospitals, care homes, GP practices, and mental health services with the same generic set of quality statements. It didn't work.

The new approach: four separate frameworks, one for each sector. Adult social care gets its own. Hospitals get their own. Primary care gets its own. Mental health gets its own. The core structure stays consistent — 5 key questions (Safe, Effective, Caring, Responsive, Well-led) and clear links to the fundamental standards. But the detail beneath them is now specific to what good looks like in each sector.

2. Quality statements are being replaced by KLOEs (Key Lines of Enquiry)

The 34 quality statements under the SAF are being replaced by 24 KLOEs, framed as structured investigative questions. The breakdown:

Key Question	Number of KLOEs
Safe	7
Effective	4
Caring	3
Responsive	4
Well-led	6

Each KLOE is a diagnostic question with a defined scope. For example:

KLOE 4 — Safeguarding

"Does the service work with partners and people to protect their rights to live in safety and be free from abuse and improper treatment?"

KLOE 16 — Listening to and responding to feedback

"Are people supported to give feedback and raise concerns, and are they confident that action will be taken as a result?"

The shift from quality statements to KLOEs matters because KLOEs are questions inspectors will investigate, not abstract descriptions of quality. They're concrete, structured, and diagnostic.

3. Rating characteristics are back (and scoring is gone)

Under the SAF, ratings were built bottom-up through a scoring hierarchy with evidence category scores, quality statement scores, key question ratings, and overall ratings. That's being removed. The new approach uses professional judgement against rating characteristics at key question level, with no intermediate scores.

Outstanding

• Culture is embedded — safety, kindness, equity, learning are not aspirations but daily practice

• The service is innovative — actively developing new approaches, contributing to good practice externally

• Outcomes are demonstrably exceeding expectations and the service can evidence this with data and stories

Good

• Standards are consistently met and aligned with current legislation and good practice

• Systems are reliable — incidents reported, investigated, learned from

• Risks are proactively identified and managed

Requires Improvement

• Practice is inconsistent — some staff or areas meet the standard, others do not

• Systems exist but are not reliably followed or kept up to date

• Improvement opportunities are missed

Inadequate

• Standards are not met and there is a track record of failure

• Systems are absent, ineffective, or actively unsafe

• People are at significant risk of harm or are experiencing harm

  
  

The one KLOE you need to watch: Listening to and responding to feedback

"Listening to and responding to feedback" was a quality statement under the SAF. Lifting it to a named KLOE in its own right is a signal. The structured question is: "Are people confident that action will be taken as a result?" That's not a process test. It's a confidence test.

The scope covers:

• Feedback and complaints

• Access to advocacy and support to raise concerns

• Unpaid carer support

  
  

The whole loop is in scope: capture, investigation, action, communication back to the person, learning embedded in practice, and demonstrable change. Not just a complaints policy. Not just a satisfaction survey. The feedback loop, closed and visible. If your feedback system is genuinely closed-loop — concerns logged, investigated, acted on, communicated back, and embedded as visible practice change — this KLOE will work in your favour.

What to do in the next 30 days

You don't need to wait for the final framework to start. The structure is public and the consultation has been clear that the broad shape will not change.

Week 1

• Download the draft adult social care framework

• Map each of the 24 KLOEs to the team member with operational accountability

• Identify which of your existing evidence packs need restructuring

Week 2

• Run a gap analysis: walk each of the 24 KLOEs and rate yourself honestly (Outstanding / Good / RI / Inadequate) against the published characteristics

• Identify your three highest-risk KLOEs — start there

Week 3

• Move all person-centred care evidence from Responsive to Caring in your evidence library

• Audit your feedback loop end-to-end against KLOE 16: can you evidence action, communication back, learning embedded in practice, and demonstrable change?

Week 4

• Submit your consultation response (deadline: 12 June 2026 at 5pm)

• Audit your MCA and DoLS records against KLOEs 4, 7, and 11

• Audit your equity evidence (reasonable adjustments, Accessible Information Standard, communication needs)

If you are unsure where your service stands, complete the free CareLearner CQC Readiness Assessment.

Closing thought

The 2026 framework is not a revolution. It is a careful, considered restoration of the structure that worked before the SAF — refined with what's been learned since, and re-anchored in sector-specific reality.

For providers who have been building their governance against the SAF for two years, the headline news is reassuring: the bones are still there. The detail beneath them is changing in ways that reward services that already operate with rigour, transparency, and a genuine closed loop between feedback, action, and learning. The next three weeks are the window in which to respond to the consultation and quietly audit your house.

After 12 June, the framework is largely set. After summer, pilots begin. By end of 2026, it is live.

About the author

Manu Thomas

Manu is a UK-based Advanced Clinical Practitioner, CQC Specialist Advisor, NHS Clinical Entrepreneur Fellow, and founder of CareLearner — a closed-loop governance platform for adult social care, NHS, and primary care. CareLearner maps directly to the new 24 KLOEs and is built around what KLOE 16 actually asks: are people confident that action will be taken?

If the feedback loop is the area that worries you most, book a 15-minute walkthrough at the link above.

Last updated: 22 May 2026