Skills for Care
Top

Single Assessment Framework version

All services - change

GO Online: Inspection toolkit

Print this page

Shared direction and culture

The culture of your service will need to be shaped around the needs of the people you support and the wider community.

The following film provides a summary of this area of inspection. It can help you and your teams learn about what will be inspected and what is important to demonstrate to deliver good or outstanding care.

Introducing Shared direction and culture

Duration 02 min 18 sec

The CQC Well-led focus will begin by looking at the vision, strategy, and culture of your organisation.

The CQC inspectors will want to know what role your managers and leaders play in setting the culture of the service, ensuring it is open and transparent.

They’ll be expecting that the culture of your service is based on ensuring the care you provide is based on equity, equality and human rights, diversity, and inclusion. Be prepared to share examples and demonstrate how managers lead by example on these matters.

Closed cultures have been a particular concern to the CQC so being able to evidence how you protect people from such will be important.

To meet CQC expectations, you will need to actively engage the people you support in shaping the culture, vision, and values. If you have got these right then both staff and the people you support should be proud of the service and the levels of care it provides.

When looking at the culture, the CQC will also want to know that there is effective team working and collaboration, that all staff are treated fairly, and they are valued and respected.

There may also be some focus on how your service assesses the social impact of the care you provide in the community.

As with other areas of inspection, evidence will be gathered by a combination of data collection, interviews, and review of documentation. Residential services should expect observations of care too.

Inspectors may want to see your strategy and vision, statement and values, associated policies and procedures … and a wide range of other written evidence so ensuring these are ready and available is important.

GO Online brings together resources, practical examples, and recommendations to meet this area of inspection.

Watch the film here: https://vimeo.com/790356798

Practical examples

The examples below provide insight into how other Good or Outstanding rated services are succeeding in this area of inspection. Use the filter to choose different types of examples or select based on related prompt.

If you have an example you would like to share, please e-mail employer.engagement@skillsforcare.org.uk.

Filter by resource type


3 example(s) found

How visible management, living and breathing the company’s values is the starting point of their culture

In this two-minute audio clip from the Care Exchange podcast, Dan Gower-Smith talks about how visible management provides opportunities for people to connect and talk to leaders, helping to set the culture.

You can listen to the full podcast here. Access our whole Care Exchange series here.

Read more about this service here.

Care provider: Avenues South East

  • Audio

Date published: January 2023


Shared values and culture

In this two-minute audio clip from the Care Exchange podcast, Debbie Dry explains how shared values and culture are everybody’s responsibility.

You can listen to the full podcast here. Access our whole Care Exchange series here.

Care provider: Windsor Lodge Care Home

  • Audio

Date published: June 2021


Taking pride in achieving your vision and values

In this one-minute audio clip from the Care Exchange podcast, Joseph Hughes explains his pride in implementing their vision and values.

You can listen to the full podcast here and access our latest episodes of The Care Exchange here.

You can read the related CQC inspection report here.

Care provider: City Care Partnership Ltd

  • Audio

Date published: May 2021



Developed in partnership with