Decision details
Care Quality Commission (CQC) Local Authority Assessment - Adult Social Care Improvement Plan Progress Update
Decision Maker: Cabinet
Decision status: Approved
Is Key decision?: Yes
Is subject to call in?: Yes
Purpose:
The Health and Care Act 2022 endowed the Care
Quality Commission (CQC) with new powers to evaluate how Local
Authorities fulfil their responsibilities under Part 1 of the Care
Act 2014. The CQC Local Authority Assessment Framework reviews the
performance of Local Authorities to ensure that both the CQC and
the Department of Health and Social Care are satisfied with the
quality of care in the area and to identify any necessary
improvements. From April 2024 to September 2024, B&NES
underwent its CQC Local Authority Assessment, and the CQC published
their report for B&NES on 30th January 2025, assigning a rating
of Requires Improvement.
The Adult Social Care Improvement Plan highlights the progress
already made and outlines the steps being taken to further enhance
our services. It reflects our self-assessment of priority areas for
improvement, alongside the key findings and areas for improvement
against quality statement scores from the CQC Local Authority
Assessment Report for B&NES. The nine priorities in the ASC
Improvement Plan align national expectations with local needs,
driving forward a shared vision for a more responsive, effective,
and sustainable Adult Social Care service that delivers better
outcomes for the B&NES population who rely on adult social care
support.
This report will outline the progress made towards the ASC
Improvement Plan, alongside the key activities that the ASC
Leadership Team is undertaking to enable sustainable
improvement.
Decision:
(1) To note the summary of progress towards the Adult Social Care Improvement Plan which highlights the main themes and action for achieving a Good CQC rating.
(2) To agree that a further update report on the progress against the ASC Improvement Plan is submitted to Cabinet in May 2026.
Reasons for the decision:
The Adult Social Care (ASC) Improvement Plan is aligned to specific CQC feedback and structured according to the CQC Local Authority Assessment themes, ensuring a clear and systematic approach to addressing identified improvement priorities.
The ASC Improvement Plan is making steady progress. Significant advancements have been achieved, with actions tracked through the monthly Improvement Board meetings and project oversight through robust highlight reporting including RAG rating on overall progress. his approach ensures rigorous oversight, constructive challenge, and shared responsibility for required actions to achieve the desired outcomes.
Alternative options considered:
As part of our annual quality assurance process the Self-Assessment is in the process of being updated to reflect the outcome of the CQC inspection report published in January 2025 and reflect progress towards the ASC Improvement Plan. The Self-Assessment report will therefore outline the progress made by ASC from September 2024 (CQC onsite inspection) to September 2025. Once finalised the Self-Assessment 2024/25 will be published.
Report author: Claire Thorogood
Publication date: 14/11/2025
Date of decision: 13/11/2025
Decided at meeting: 13/11/2025 - Cabinet
Effective from: 22/11/2025
Accompanying Documents:
- E3656 Decision - Care Quality Commission (CQC) Local Authority Assessment - ASC Improvement Plan Progress Update
PDF 71 KB - E3656 - Care Quality Commission (CQC) Local Authority Assessment (ASC) Improvement Plan Progress Update
PDF 177 KB
- E3656 - Appendix 1 - Adult Social Care Improvement Plan Update
PDF 1 MB