---
title: "Understanding CQC’s Quality Statements: A Plain English Guide"
description: What do the CQC's quality statements really mean in day-to-day practice? And how can providers evidence them during inspection? BAXCQC explains more.
image: https://blog.baxcqc.co.uk/hubfs/undefined-1.png
---

# Understanding CQC’s Quality Statements: A Plain English Guide

![](https://blog.baxcqc.co.uk/hubfs/undefined-1.png)

- October 2, 2025

![Tracy Green](https://blog.baxcqc.co.uk/hubfs/Tracy-whiteish-background.webp)

[ Tracy Green ](https://blog.baxcqc.co.uk/articles/author/tracy-green)

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) reshaped how it regulates services through its **Assessment Framework**. At the core are **34 Quality Statements**, each framed as a **“we” **statement. They describe what good care looks like from the perspective of people who use services.

But what do these statements really mean in day-to-day practice? And how can providers evidence them during inspection?

## **What Are Quality Statements?**

The Quality Statements are clear, outcome-focused expectations written in plain English. For example:

- *“We protect people from avoidable harm and abuse.”*
- *“We treat people with kindness, dignity and respect.”*

They replace the old **Key Lines of Enquiry (KLOEs)** and act as the backbone of inspection. Instead of being process-heavy, they ask: **“Can you show us what good looks like for your patients and staff?”**

## **Why They Matter for Providers**

CQC inspections are now framed around these statements. That means:

- Your policies, training, and governance systems should map directly against them.
- Evidence needs to show not only that systems exist, but that **they work in practice**.
- Inspections will focus more on outcomes and feedback than just written documents.

## **The Five Key Questions & Evidence Examples**

Here’s how the 34 statements sit under the **five key questions** — with practical examples of the kind of evidence CQC might expect:

| **Key Question** | **Examples of “We Statement” Evidence** |
| --- | --- |
| **Safe** | - Safeguarding logs, incident reports, and lessons learned. - Risk assessments for fire safety, infection control, and lone working. - Medicines audits showing error reduction. - Staff rotas and training records demonstrating safe staffing levels. |
| **Effective** | - Patient care plans showing needs assessment and regular review. - Clinical audits (e.g. antibiotic prescribing, chronic disease management). - Multidisciplinary meeting minutes demonstrating teamwork. - Staff training logs and appraisal records. |
| **Caring** | - Patient and family feedback forms. - Observations from mock inspections showing staff-patient interactions. - Equality and diversity training materials. - Case studies of patient involvement in care planning. |
| **Responsive** | - Accessibility policies (e.g. interpreters, easy-read materials). - Complaints log and evidence of changes made in response. - Waiting time monitoring reports. - Community engagement initiatives (e.g. Patient Participation Group minutes). |
| **Well-led** | - Board or partnership meeting minutes showing oversight of quality and risk. - Quality improvement plans and progress reports. - Staff surveys highlighting culture and wellbeing. - Use of data dashboards to track performance. |

## **Making Quality Statements Work for You**

To embed the Quality Statements into everyday practice:

1. **Map Your Evidence** – Create a matrix showing how your current policies, audits, and feedback align with each statement
2. **Engage Your Team** – Use the “we” language in staff meetings and training so it feels relevant and lived
3. **Gather Real Stories** – Patient testimonials, staff experiences, and case studies bring statements to life
4. **Close the Gaps** – Where evidence is thin, develop an action plan (e.g. more patient surveys, better complaint tracking)
5. Use an online assessment tool to identify and log your evidence.

![](https://blog.baxcqc.co.uk/hs-fs/hubfs/undefined-1.png?width=757&height=602&name=undefined-1.png)

 

The CQC’s Quality Statements shift the focus from paperwork to **real-world outcomes**. By collecting the right evidence — from audits to patient feedback — providers can demonstrate they don’t just have systems in place, but that they make a difference to people’s care.

 **Need help mapping your evidence to the 34 Quality Statements? **[Contact us](https://www.baxcqc.co.uk/contact) **today as we have developed an online tool that helps you do just this.**

**Our [CQC compliance](https://www.baxcqc.co.uk/cqc-compliance)**** team ****can also work with you to create an evidence framework that gives you confidence and ensures you are inspection-ready.**

```json
{
  "@context" : "https://schema.org",
  "@type" : "BlogPosting",
  "author" : {
    "@type" : "Person",
    "name" : "Tracy Green",
    "url" : "https://blog.baxcqc.co.uk/articles/author/tracy-green"
  },
  "dateModified" : "2025-11-03T13:09:40.315Z",
  "datePublished" : "2025-10-02T09:18:26.000Z",
  "headline" : "Understanding CQC’s Quality Statements: A Plain English Guide",
  "image" : [ "https://blog.baxcqc.co.uk/hubfs/undefined-1.png" ],
  "mainEntityOfPage" : {
    "@id" : "https://blog.baxcqc.co.uk/articles/understanding-cqc-quality-statements",
    "@type" : "WebPage"
  },
  "publisher" : {
    "@type" : "Organization",
    "logo" : {
      "@type" : "ImageObject",
      "url" : "https://blog.baxcqc.co.uk/hubfs/bax-cqc-logo-horizontal-rgb-midnight-tagline-centre-2.svg"
    },
    "name" : "Baxi Partnership Limited"
  }
}
```