Who needs to register?
From April 2010, all health and adult social care providers will be required by law to register with us if they provide regulated activities. Find out which activities and providers will be included in the scope of registration (subject to legislation):
- Who has to register?
- Which providers will be included in the scope of registration?
- What is a regulated activity?
- What is a location?
- Will existing providers have to re-register?
- What about care provided under an individual budget?
Who has to register?
From April 2010, subject to legislation, all health and adult social care providers will be required by law to be registered with us if they provide regulated activities .
Which providers will be included in the scope of registration?
From April 2010, all NHS trusts (including primary care trusts as providers) must be registered.
From October 2010, all currently registered adult social care and independent healthcare providers must be registered, with the exceptions of:
- some providers of non-surgical laser and intense pulsed light services
Download the scope of laser and light services (opens in a new window)
- domiciliary care agencies and nursing agencies that purely provide staff to other registered providers
- Shared Lives schemes that do not arrange placements for people with personal care needs.
From April 2011, primary care services that directly provide dentistry (NHS and private) must be registered together with independent ambulance services.
From April 2012, primary medical care services (including GP practices and out-of-hours services) must be registered.
Download the scope of registration (opens in a new window)
What is a regulated activity?
Regulated activities that require registration are described in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2009. They include:
- personal care
- accommodation with nursing or personal care
- accommodation for persons who require treatment for substance misuse
- accommodation and nursing or personal care in the further education sector
- treatment of disease, disorder or injury
- assessment or medical treatment for persons detained under the Mental Health Act 1983
- surgical procedures
- diagnostic and screening procedures
- management of supply of blood and blood-derived products
- transport services, triage and medical advice provided remotely
- maternity and midwifery services
- termination of pregnancies
- services in slimming clinics
- nursing care
- family planning services
The list of regulated activities included in the regulations is based on the level of risk to people who use services. They are likely to be amended and updated from time to time, but providers need to know what the current situation. For up-to-date information once the regulations have been approved in Parliament, providers should refer to the Department of Health website (opens in new window).
Providers will need to produce a statement of purpose to let us know the kinds of services they provide and the locations at which they provide them.
It is a serious offence to carry out a regulated activity without being registered.
For more detail download our short guide ‘The scope of registration' from the top right of this page.
What is a location?
A location is a place where regulated activities are provided. For example, the following would all be "locations":
- Each hospital run by one NHS trust
- A single nursing home run by an individual
- An adult placement scheme run by an organisation
Locations can carry on a regulated activity over a geographical area, but it is the 'main address' where the activity is carried on (such as a hospital or care home) or carried on from (such as a domiciliary care agency or district nursing service).
The term location is important because providers will self-assess and declare compliance against each regulated activity at each location. Monitoring this declaration is an important part of how we make judgements about continuing compliance with the essential standards of quality and safety.
Will existing providers have to re-register?
Yes. All providers who are in scope of the new regulations will need to register and all will need to issue a new declaration stating compliance with all of the essential standards of quality and safety.
The registration of providers currently registered under the Care Standards Act 2000 ends on 30 September 2010 and their new registration should begin under the new system from 1 October 2010. This includes NHS trusts that provide services already registered under the Care Standards Act 2000.
Providers do not have to "de-register", but registrations made under the Care Standards Act 2000 are not transferable to the new system because the legal status of the new essential standards of quality and safety is different. Providers will have to apply to be registered under the new system. We want to make it as easy as possible for providers to register, but there will be no automatic "passport" through to the new system.
What about care provided under an individual budget?
Where a person makes their own arrangement for nursing care or personal care, and the nurse or carer works for them without an agency involved in managing or directing the care the service is exempt.
Further detail on exemptions from registration is contained within our short guide ‘The scope of registration' which can be downloaded from the top right of this page.
