The Care Quality Commission stopped issuing its own inspection star ratings back in 2010. Since then, some homes have undertaken independent inspections which they pay for. They are then provided with a star rating which can be used for marketing purposes. Care homes with a five-star rating can also demand a premium fee from those wishing to use the services, including local authorities.

Questions are now being raised over the consistency and value provided by the star ratings. There are many independent ratings companies and consultants and they are all vying for a finite amount of work.

The Care Quality Commission is now finding that some care homes with five-star ratings are not actually meeting essential standards laid down by the care regulator. The BBC programme, 5 Live Investigates has found that in one region, of 80 homes given a four- or five-star rating, 14 are failing to meet one or more of the essential criteria laid down by the CQC.

This has lead to serious concerns being raised about the welfare and protection of vulnerable adults who are placed in care homes by family members or local authorities who have taken account of the care homes’ star ratings and believe, as a result, that a care home is providing an outstanding level of care. CQC advises that people should visit homes and check their most recent CQC inspection report before making any decision on care.

A recent survey by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has found that more than 200 companies in England who employ staff to provide social care to vulnerable people in their own homes have hired staff who do not have sufficient appropriate qualifications for the jobs they are required to do.

It also found that eight companies in the Midlands hadn’t carried out any Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks on staff and one firm was found to be employing staff who had 23 workers with criminal convictions which included assault and theft.

The Department of Health has expressed concern but said that individual companies have a responsibility to employ suitable staff.

The Care Minister, Norman Lamb, said that the survey is deeply concerning and the organisations concerned need to be held to account by the CQC as there are stringent rules concerning the employment of social care workers.

Dame Jo Williams, the Chair of the Care Quality Commission, is to step down once a replacement is found. The CQC is the organisation which regulates health and social care in England but came under attack last year after the abuse of residents in a care home was exposed. Dame Jo has been Chair at the CQC since 2010.

A BBC Panorama programme uncovered vulnerable adults suffering physical and verbal abuse in a Bristol hospital after which the Care Quality Commission (CQC) carried out 145 unannounced inspections of hospitals and care homes. Of that number, it was found that nearly half didn’t actually meet welfare standards.

48% of the premises inspected failed to meet required standards in terms of care, welfare and whether people were safe from abuse. The report also found that independently-run services were twice as likely to fail as those which are run by the NHS.

69 of the 145 inspected locations failed to meet one or both standards and 35 failed to meet both.

The report went on to suggest that there are lessons to be learned by care providers with regards to the use of restraint and an urgent need to reduce its use. It said that staff should be trained to use more appropriate ways of restraining patinets.

The job of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) is to check whether hospitals, care homes and care services are meeting Government standards by making unannounced inspections and producing written reports on what they find.  The subsequent reports are available for inspection by members of the public as well as Government departments

A former CQC inspector has recently been arrested on suspicion of bribery and money laundering over allegations that she pressurised homes which she was inspecting into giving money in exchange for favourable reports.

The CQC had already sacked the inspector following an internal investigation and went on to inform police.  Police arrested the woman from Northamtponshire yesterday morning.

The CQC said it had a “zero tolerance policy” towards fraudulent or dishonest behaviour and that it expected “extremely high standards” from its inspectors.

Louise Guss, Director of Governance and Legal Services at the CQC, said: “This inspector has failed the organisation, failed the providers who rely on us to act fairly and impartially, and – most importantly – failed in their responsibility to protect people who use services through identification of poor care.

“Unfortunately, in any large workforce there is a risk that a tiny minority may act in a way that betrays the principles of their colleagues and of the organisation as a whole, which is what has happened here.

“Having investigated allegations made to us about this inspector and found these were substantiated, we terminated their employment with immediate effect and referred the matter to the police.”

City of London Police have said that they will be working closely with the CQC to thoroughly investigate the allegations.