Regulatory Update for Care Providers: 8 October 2026
Updated: Oct 9
This week's key regulatory and sector developments from CQC, Skills for Care and the Department of Health and Social Care
Keeping up with regulatory and sector developments is essential for care providers. This week's update focuses on learning from inspections, statutory and mandatory training, and the importance of accurate adult social care data and records.
This Week at a Glance
Organisation | Update |
CQC | Wisteria Lodge has been rated Outstanding following an inspection highlighting personalised care, effective governance and learning from incidents. |
Skills for Care | A new statutory and mandatory training bundle brings together eight key training topics for adult social care. |
DHSC | The 2026 adult social care data collection notice sets out mandatory national data collections and reporting arrangements for 2026–27. |
1. Wisteria Lodge rated Outstanding following CQC inspection
Published: 6 October 2026 | Care Quality Commission (CQC)
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has rated Wisteria Lodge in Waterlooville, Hampshire, Outstanding following an inspection in August 2026.
The service, which provides nursing care for older people, including people living with dementia, was upgraded from Good to Outstanding overall.
Inspectors found that staff investigated incidents, identified learning and used service-wide trends to help prevent issues from happening again. Care plans and risk assessments were updated when required, and staff worked proactively with specialist professionals to support people's needs.
The inspection also highlighted personalised care, with residents supported according to their individual needs, preferences and what mattered to them.
What does this mean for care providers?
The inspection provides a useful example of how effective governance and continuous learning can contribute to better outcomes for people receiving care.
Providers can consider:
Whether incidents are properly investigated and learning is identified
Whether lessons from incidents are reflected in care plans and risk assessments
Whether recurring issues and service-wide trends are reviewed
Whether residents' individual needs, preferences and choices are reflected in their care
Whether staff work effectively with relevant specialist professionals
Whether governance systems demonstrate that identified improvements are followed through
Learning from incidents should lead to meaningful changes in practice rather than simply being recorded.
The key question for providers
When something goes wrong in your service, can you demonstrate how the learning has improved care?
Official source: CQC: CQC rates Wisteria Lodge as outstanding
2. Skills for Care launches new statutory and mandatory training bundle
Published: 2 October 2026 | Skills for Care
Skills for Care has launched a new statutory and mandatory training bundle through its Training Hub for adult social care.
The bundle is aligned with Part 1 of the statutory and mandatory training guidance and brings together eight training topics.
The six core eLearning modules for adult social care workers cover:
Health and safety awareness
Fire safety awareness
Moving and handling objects
Introduction to infection prevention and control
Adult safeguarding awareness
Child safeguarding awareness
Two additional modules are available depending on the worker's role: Principles of medication administration and Food hygiene awareness, with the food hygiene module becoming available later in 2026.
The bundle provides approximately five hours of eLearning, with knowledge checks and certificates included for each module.
What does this mean for care providers?
The new training bundle provides an opportunity for providers to review how statutory and mandatory training is managed across their workforce.
Providers can consider:
Whether staff have completed the training relevant to their roles
Whether refresher training is completed when required
Whether new starters receive appropriate training as part of induction
Whether training records are accurate and up to date
Whether staff understand how training applies to their day-to-day responsibilities
Whether training gaps are identified and followed up
Whether mandatory training requirements are being reviewed regularly
Training should support safe practice and workforce competence, rather than being treated simply as a compliance exercise.
The key question for providers
Can you demonstrate that your staff have the right training, at the right time, for the roles they carry out?
Official source: Skills for Care: Skills for Care launches new statutory and mandatory training bundle for adult social care
3. DHSC publishes 2026 notice for adult social care data collections
Published: 5 October 2026 | Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC)
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has published its Adult social care data collection: 2026 notice, setting out the mandatory national adult social care data collections and reporting arrangements for 2026–27.
The notice applies to the 153 councils with adult social services responsibilities in England and covers a range of national collections, including adult social care surveys, safeguarding adults, Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS), adult social care finance, guardianship and workforce data.
The data will continue to be submitted through NHS England's Strategic Data Collection Service (SDCS), while DHSC will publish the resulting statistics.
The information is used by organisations including DHSC, CQC, ADASS and the Local Government Association to support monitoring, benchmarking, transparency, policy development and improvements in adult social care.
What does this mean for care providers?
The notice is primarily directed towards local authorities rather than individual care homes. However, it highlights the wider sector's continued focus on accurate, consistent and useful adult social care information.
Providers can consider:
Whether care records and other service information are accurate and consistently maintained
Whether safeguarding and incident information is properly recorded
Whether workforce information is kept up to date
Whether important information can be retrieved efficiently when required
Whether staff understand their responsibilities around record keeping and information governance
Whether current systems support accurate and consistent care information
Good-quality data is important not only for reporting. Accurate information can also help providers identify trends, monitor quality and make informed decisions about care.
The key question for providers
If your service information was reviewed today, could you demonstrate that your records are accurate, complete and reliable?
Official source: GOV.UK: Adult social care data collection: 2026 notice
Takeaways for Care Providers
Learn from incidents
CQC's inspection of Wisteria Lodge highlights the importance of investigating incidents, identifying learning and demonstrating how that learning leads to improvements in practice.
Keep training current
The new Skills for Care training bundle provides a useful reminder to review statutory and mandatory training requirements, completion records and workforce competency.
Maintain accurate records
The latest DHSC data collection notice reinforces the wider importance of reliable adult social care information. Accurate records support quality monitoring, governance and informed decision-making.
Key takeaway
Good care depends on good systems.
Across these three updates, a common theme emerges: effective care is supported by strong governance, competent staff and reliable information.
Whether it is learning from incidents, keeping staff training up to date or maintaining accurate records, care providers need systems that are understood, followed and working in practice.
Take a moment this week to ask:
“Are our training, governance and record-keeping systems strong enough to demonstrate continuous improvement in the care we provide?”
Related CareLearner Resources
Record Keeping in Health and Social Care : A course supporting care staff to understand the importance of accurate, clear and appropriate record keeping in health and social care.
Work in a Person-Centred Way : Helps care staff understand person-centred approaches and how to support people's individual needs, preferences, choices and rights.
Information Governance : Supports care staff in understanding how information should be handled, protected and shared appropriately.
Disclaimer
Regulatory and sector updates are provided for general information and should be considered alongside the latest guidance and requirements applicable to your organisation. Always refer to the original source for full details and the most up-to-date information.
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