5.3 Who does this procedure apply to?

The procedure applies to all care and support provision, whether directly commissioned or not by a Local Authority or Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) or NHS England, and irrespective of whether or not it is included in the CQC market oversight regime. Services managed by the Local Authority or NHS are subject to the same level of scrutiny as independent care providers.

Risk Matrix

This guidance should be considered in parallel to Risk Matrices. Within the NHS, The National Quality Board has implemented guidance on the Risk Summit process. The risk matrix process can be implemented if any part of the local, regional or national system has concerns that there may be serious quality failures within a provider organisation and which cannot be addressed through established and routine operational systems. This includes where there are significant safeguarding breaches and breakdowns in systems which compromise the safety of individual with care and support needs. The Risk Matrix can be an effective and non-prejudicial method for facilitating the rapid sharing of information and intelligence across different organisations, and for initiating remedial actions where it is required to safeguard or improve quality. Risk Matrices can both inform and be informed of quality concerns arising at Care Quality or Care Governance Boards. Where a Risk Matrix notes safeguarding concerns these should be managed through local adult safeguarding arrangements.

There are regional Care Governance Groups established in the South East to bring together different parts of health and care economies to routinely share information and intelligence to safeguard the quality of care individuals receive. (Structures and Organisations Appendix 4).