HOW TO PREPARE FOR CQC
Questions you might be asked on CQC inspection day (and how to prepare for them)

One of the hardest parts of preparing for a CQC inspection is not knowing exactly how the day will unfold.

You can have your documents organised, your audits in order and your policies up to date. But it’s often the conversations that can feel hardest to prepare for. What will your inspector ask? Who will they speak to? And how do you help your team feel ready without over-rehearsing?

The good news is that while inspections aren’t built around a fixed script, there will likely be clear patterns in the kinds of questions that come up. And once you understand what inspectors are really looking for, the day can feel much more manageable.

The questions you’re most likely to be asked

Inspectors often ask the practice to present its own view of performance against the five key questions, including examples of what’s working well and where improvements have been made.

1. “How do you keep patients safe?”

This is one of the most common themes on inspection day, and it can show up in lots of different ways depending on who the inspector is speaking to.

They may ask things like:

• How do systems, processes and practices keep people safe and safeguarded from abuse?
• What are your arrangements to respond to medical emergencies?
• How are risks to people assessed, monitored and managed?
• How do you manage clinical records to ensure safe care and treatment?
• Have you made any changes to your approach to medicine management?

What inspectors are really looking for

They’re looking for evidence from you that safety is built into how your clinic actually runs. That means they want to understand:

• Whether your team knows what to do if something goes wrong
• Whether risks are identified early and escalated properly
• If your key safety processes (like safeguarding, infection prevention, emergency response and medicines management) are active, not just documented
• Whether you can show that you review issues and learn from them

How to prepare

Make sure you can show both the process and a recent example. For instance: a safeguarding escalation route, an emergency response process, a recent infection control audit or a change you made after a medicines-related issue.

What a strong answer sounds like

“We review incidents and near misses monthly, log actions centrally and update our processes where needed. For example, after a recent medicines issue we changed how repeat prescribing is checked and briefed the team at our next clinical governance meeting.”

2. “How do you know care is evidence-based and your team is competent?”

This is where the ‘Effective’ part of the key questions comes in. The CQC wants to know how services keep care aligned with current guidance and whether staff have the right skills to deliver it.

They might ask:

• How are you identifying, cascading and keeping up to date with changes in clinical guidance?

• What are your oversight arrangements for clinical care provided by clinical and non-clinical staff?

• How do you ensure staff have the skills, knowledge and experience to deliver effective care?

What inspectors are really looking for

Here, inspectors are usually trying to understand whether good care is being delivered consistently and whether that’s supported by the right training, oversight and clinical governance.

They want to see:

• How your clinic keeps up with new clinical guidance or safety updates
• How changes are shared with the team
• How you make sure staff are working within their competence
• Whether there’s meaningful supervision, training and support in place

How to prepare

Be ready to show how guidance moves into practice. That could mean training logs, supervision, appraisals, competency checks, or a clear process for sharing alerts and updating protocols.

What a strong answer sounds like

“We review relevant guidance and safety alerts regularly and if anything changes, we update the team through meetings, shared communications and changes to protocols where needed. We also keep training records up to date and use appraisals and supervision to make sure staff feel confident in their roles.”

3. “How do patients feel listened to and involved?”

The ‘Caring’ questions are where inspectors test whether patient-centred care is genuinely embedded, not just described in policy.

They might ask:

• How does the service ensure that people are treated with kindness, respect and compassion?
• How do you support people to express their views and be actively involved in decisions about their care?
  

What inspectors are really looking for

They’re looking for signs that:

• Patients are treated with kindness, dignity and respect
• Consent is meaningful, not rushed
• Patients feel listened to and involved in decisions
• Communication is adapted where needed
• Your clinic sees patient-centred care as part of day-to-day practice, not just a value statement

How to prepare

Think about how your clinic supports informed consent, shared decision-making and accessible communication. It’s helpful to have examples of how you adapt for different patient needs and how you gather feedback and act on it.

What a strong answer sounds like

“We make sure patients have time to ask questions, understand their options and feel comfortable making informed decisions. If someone needs information in a different format or needs more support to communicate, we adapt where we can rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach.”

4. “Can patients access the right care in the right way?”

CQC’s ‘Responsive’ questions are especially relevant for private providers balancing demand, follow-up, continuity and accessibility.

Their questions might include:

• How do you take into account patient choice about how, when and where they want to be seen?

• How do you ensure people with information and communication needs can access appointments and services?

• How are you managing access to services?

• How are you ensuring equitable access to appointments when they’re needed?

• What are your arrangements for clinician call-backs so patients are not missed?
  

What inspectors are really looking for

Inspectors know that access isn’t always perfect, especially in busy services. They’re not necessarily expecting zero delays or unlimited capacity. What they’re really trying to understand is:

• How patients access the service in practice
• Whether urgent needs are identified and prioritised safely
• Whether your clinic is thinking about accessibility, not just availability
• How you support people with different communication or practical needs
• What happens when demand increases or something doesn’t go to plan

How to prepare

Be ready to explain how patients book, how urgent needs are triaged, how delays are managed and how you support people who may struggle with phone or digital access. Inspectors may ask about appointment availability, interpreter access and coordination with other providers.

What a strong answer sounds like

“We monitor appointment demand closely and have a clear process for triage and prioritisation, especially where urgent concerns are involved. If there are delays, we try to communicate clearly so patients understand what to expect and what to do next.”

5. “How do leaders know what’s going on?”

Under ‘Well-led’, CQC focuses on risk, culture and continuous improvement. That includes questions like:

• How do you assure yourself that you are providing a safe service?
• How are you monitoring business risks and issues?
• What are the arrangements for business continuity?
• What systems are in place to support people to speak up and raise concerns?
• How do you support people to provide feedback?
  

What inspectors are really looking for

This is often where inspectors are testing whether your clinic has real oversight. They want to see:

• If leaders understand current risks and pressures
• Whether governance is active and visible
• Whether issues are discussed, tracked and followed through
• If staff feel safe raising concerns
• Whether improvement is shared and sustained, rather than sitting with one person

How to prepare

Have clear examples of governance in action: audits, incidents, complaints, action plans, meeting minutes and ownership of key areas such as safeguarding or infection control. Have a business continuity plan and clear evidence of staff meetings and governance activity available.

What a strong answer sounds like

“We review incidents, complaints, audits and patient feedback regularly as part of our governance cycle, and we assign clear actions and owners where improvements are needed. That means we’re using this information to make decisions, rather than just collecting it.”

Dr Jonathan Andrews is a Medical Director and practising doctor working across both the NHS and private healthcare. In addition, Jonathan also leads Govanta Compliance, a CQC consultancy dedicated to demystifying the inspection process and helping practices achieve successful outcomes. He advises start-ups and scale-ups and delivers educational services across a broad range of topics.