Regulation 18: Staffing

Component of the regulation

Providers must have regard to the following guidance

18(1) Sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, competent, skilled and experienced persons must be deployed in order to meet the requirements of this Part.

• Providers must deploy sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, competent, skilled and experienced staff to make sure that they can meet people's care and treatment needs and therefore meet the requirements of Section 2 of these regulations (the fundamental standards).
• Providers should have a systematic approach to determine the number of staff and range of skills required in order to meet the needs of people using the service and keep them safe at all times. The approach they use must reflect current legislation and guidance where it is available. In determining the number of staff and range of skills required to meet people's needs, they should consider the different levels of skills and competence required to meet those needs, the registered professional and support workers needed, supervision needs and leadership requirements.
• Staffing levels and skill mix must be reviewed continuously and adapted to respond to the changing needs and circumstances of people using the service.
• There should be procedures to follow in an emergency that make sure sufficient and suitable people are deployed to cover both the emergency and the routine work of the service.

18(2) Persons employed by the service provider in the provision of a regulated activity must—

18(2)(a ) receive such appropriate support, training, professional development, supervision and appraisal as is necessary to enable them to carry out the duties they are employed to perform,

• Providers must ensure that they have an induction programme that prepares staff for their role. It is expected that providers that employ healthcare assistants and social care support workers should follow the Care Certificate standards to make sure new staff are supported, skilled and assessed as competent to carry out their roles.
• Training, learning and development needs of individual staff members must be carried out at the start of employment and reviewed at appropriate intervals during the course of employment. Staff must be supported to undertake training, learning and development to enable them to fulfil the requirements of their role.
• Where appropriate, staff must be supervised until they can demonstrate required/acceptable levels of competence to carry out their role unsupervised.
• Staff should receive appropriate ongoing or periodic supervision in their role to make sure competence is maintained.
• Staff should be supported to make sure they are can participate in:
  • Statutory training.
  • Other mandatory training, as defined by the provider for their role.
  • Any additional training identified as necessary to carry out regulated activities as part of their job duties and, in particular, to maintain necessary skills to meet the needs of the people they care for and support.
  • Other learning and development opportunities required to enable them to fulfil their role. This includes first aid training for people working in the adult social care sector.
• All learning and development and required training completed should be monitored and appropriate action taken quickly when training requirements are not being met.
• Staff should receive regular appraisal of their performance in their role from an appropriately skilled and experienced person and any training, learning and development needs should be identified, planned for and supported.
• Health, social and other care professionals must have access to clinical or professional supervision as required, in line with the requirements of the relevant professional regulator.

18(2)(b) be enabled where appropriate to obtain further qualifications appropriate to the work they perform, and

• Providers must support staff to obtain appropriate further qualifications that would enable them to continue to perform their role.
• Providers must not act in a way that prevents or limits staff from obtaining further qualifications that are appropriate to their role.

18(2)(c) where such persons are health care professionals, social workers or other professionals registered with a health care or social care regulator, be enabled to provide evidence to the regulator in question demonstrating, where it is possible to do so, that they continue to meet the professional standards which are a condition of their ability to practise or a requirement of their role.

• Where registration with a professional body is a requirement of the role, providers must make sure that staff are able to meet the requirements of the relevant professional regulator throughout their employment, such as requirements for continuing professional development.
• Staff should be supported to join Accredited Voluntary Registers if they wish. Providers must have appropriate systems in place to support this, such as revalidation and meeting codes of practice.
• Providers must not act in a way that prevents, limits or would result in staff not meeting requirements required by professional regulators.