Adult Social Care Assurance
Part I of the Care Act 2014 sets out a wide range of care and support responsibilities and functions (functions relate to the processes, activities or broader responsibilities that local authorities perform), for which local authorities are responsible. These include the direct provision or commissioning of adult social care services.
	The Act will introduce a new legal duty for the CQC to review and make an assessment of the performance of local authorities in discharging their "regulated care functions" under Part 1 of the Care Act 2014. These are the specific adult social care functions, which will be set out in secondary legislation, that will be subject to review by the CQC, with the aim of assessing the effectiveness of services put in place to achieve high quality care outcomes for local populations.
	The CQC must publish the findings of their reviews with the intention of helping people see and understand how their local authority is performing in the delivery of its adult social care duties, and thus support transparency and local accountability. This will support local authorities to understand what they are doing well and help them to identify what they could do better. It will also help DHSC understand what is happening in the provision of adult social care at a local level as well as forming an overarching national picture, gaining insight into issues such as regional variation. This will provide a platform from which DHSC and Government partners can work with local authorities to promote best practice, provide support, and act to secure improvement in the event of substantial issues being identified.
	The CQC is the regulator of health and social care in England and has a statutory duty to undertake a variety of functions, including conducting reviews and performance assessments of adult social care providers, as set out under section 46 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008. Under section 48 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008, the CQC has undertaken local strategic reviews of how well health and care systems work together to care for people.
	The exact functions in Part 1 of the Care Act 2014 in scope for review under the new duty will be set out in secondary legislation. The reviews undertaken by the CQC under the new section 46A will be by reference to objectives and priorities set for the CQC by the Secretary of State. This will help focus reviews of regulated care functions on areas of particular concern or in alignment with future key priorities for adult social care policy. Review by the CQC will also be by reference to a set of quality indicators determined by the CQC and approved by the Secretary of State.
	The CQC must devise a methodology for assessing and evaluating local authorities including the frequency by which it will undertake its performance reviews, which it must then set out in a statement to be approved by the Secretary of State. For example, in developing the methodology for assessment, the CQC may wish to undertake reviews at different intervals or make a case for alternative methodologies depending on the specific case presented. The CQC may also consider that it wishes to review local authorities that perform above a certain threshold less frequently.
	The new duty for the CQC will sit alongside their existing powers and duties to undertake special reviews or investigations under section 48 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008. Section 48 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 provides that the CQC may, or must when requested by the Secretary of State, conduct a "special review" or investigation into a range of matters, including the provision of adult social care services. The CQC must first gain the approval of the Secretary of State before undertaking a review of how local authorities arrange for the provision of adult social services. Section 48 is amended by this Act so that there is a clear distinction between these "special reviews" or investigations, and the reviews to be carried out by the CQC under the new section 46A of the Health and Social Care Act 2008.
	Section 50 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 sets out the steps which the CQC may or must take following a review under section 46 (or a special review or investigation under section 48) of the Health and Social Care Act 2008, where it is considered that a local authority is failing to discharge its adult social services functions. Section 50 is amended by this Act to also apply to reviews conducted by the CQC under the new section 46A.
	Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 enables the CQC to conduct inspections for the purposes of its regulatory functions, including functions carried out under sections 46, 48 and 50. Section 60 is amended by this Act so that the CQC may carry out inspections for the purposes of its reviews under new section 46A.