CQC Regulation 19: fit and proper persons employed

The rule: Regulation 19 as it reads today

Regulation 19 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 is headed “Fit and proper persons employed”, and it applies to every person a provider registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) employs “for the purposes of carrying on a regulated activity” – in a care home, a home care agency providing personal care, supported living, a GP practice or a hospital. The current text, from Regulation 19 on legislation.gov.uk, has eight paragraphs:

• 19(1): “Persons employed for the purposes of carrying on a regulated activity must– (a) be of good character, (b) have the qualifications, competence, skills and experience which are necessary for the work to be performed by them, and (c) be able by reason of their health, after reasonable adjustments are made, of properly performing tasks which are intrinsic to the work for which they are employed.”
• 19(2): “Recruitment procedures must be established and operated effectively to ensure that persons employed meet the conditions in– (a) paragraph (1), or (b) in a case to which regulation 5 applies, paragraph (3) of that regulation.”
• 19(3): “Subject to paragraph (3A), the following information must be available in relation to each such person employed– (a) the information specified in Schedule 3, and (b) such other information as is required under any enactment to be kept by the registered person in relation to such persons employed.”
• 19(3A): “Unless regulation 4, 6 or 7 applies, where the person so employed is a volunteer, paragraph (3) does not require the information specified in paragraph 7 of Schedule 3 to be made available.”
• 19(4): “Persons employed must be registered with the relevant professional body where such registration is required by, or under, any enactment in relation to– (a) the work that the person is to perform, or (b) the title that the person takes or uses.”
• 19(5): “Where a person employed by the registered person no longer meets the criteria in paragraph (1), the registered person must– (a) take such action as is necessary and proportionate to ensure that the requirement in that paragraph is complied with, and (b) if the person is a health care professional, social worker or other professional registered with a health care or social care regulator, inform the regulator in question.”
• 19(6): “Paragraphs (1) and (3) of this regulation do not apply in a case to which regulation 5 applies.”
• 19(7) defines a “volunteer” for the regulation as a person employed under the arrangements for providing services voluntarily in regulation 2(2)(c).

Paragraphs (3A) and (7) were inserted from 15 January 2024 by SI 2023/1404. Quote the regulation from legislation.gov.uk rather than from CQC: CQC's page Regulation 19: Fit and proper persons employed (last updated 16 May 2025) reproduces the regulation “in full” without 19(3A) and 19(7), so a policy copied from it carries the pre-2024 text, although CQC's guidance beneath it does reflect the volunteer change.

The Regulations govern regulated activities registered with CQC, and regulation 3(3) says “an activity is only a regulated activity if it is carried on in England”. Care Inspectorate Wales, the Care Inspectorate in Scotland and RQIA in Northern Ireland run separate regimes with their own recruitment rules.

“Persons employed” is wider than the payroll. Regulation 2 defines employment as including work under “a contract of service, an apprenticeship, a contract for services or otherwise than under a contract”, and “otherwise than under a contract” includes a shared lives agreement, an agreement with a temporary work agency “for the supply of an agency worker”, and “arrangements for persons to provide their services voluntarily”. CQC's guidance puts it plainly: “It is important to note that "person employed" will include any member of staff who currently works in the service as a volunteer or a contractor, as well as agency or bank staff.”

Schedule 3: the eight items for every person employed

Schedule 3 of the 2014 Regulations lists the information that must be available for each person employed. The full text is on Schedule 3 on legislation.gov.uk; CQC's Provider and CQC Inspector FAQs for meeting CQC's requirements of employment for Regulation 19 explains how inspectors read it. In order:

1. Identity: “Proof of identity including a recent photograph.”
2. A criminal record certificate (a standard certificate under section 113A of the Police Act 1997) where one is required because the role is covered by an exempted question, with barring information where applicable.
3. An enhanced criminal record certificate (section 113B) where the role is eligible for one, with suitability information relating to children or vulnerable adults – the barred list check – where applicable. Schedule 3 ties the level of check to the role's eligibility, so not every worker gets an enhanced check with barred lists; each gets the level they are eligible for. CQC's FAQ says inspectors “will expect to see that the provider is keeping a record of the information obtained (including whether barred list information was received)”. What to keep from a certificate, and what not to copy, is in the DBS record keeping guide.
4. Conduct in previous care work: “Satisfactory evidence of conduct in previous employment concerned with the provision of services relating to– (a) health or social care, or (b) children or vulnerable adults.” Schedule 3 does not say “references”, and it sets no number of them; the duty is evidence of conduct in that kind of work.
5. Why that work ended: where the person was previously employed in a position involving work with children or vulnerable adults, “satisfactory verification, so far as reasonably practicable, of the reason why P's employment in that position ended”.
6. Qualifications: “In so far as it is reasonably practicable to obtain, satisfactory documentary evidence of any qualification relevant to the duties for which the person is employed or appointed to perform.”
7. Employment history: “A full employment history, together with a satisfactory written explanation of any gaps in employment.” CQC's FAQ says “A "full employment history" means a career history from the age of first employment”, which “must outline all periods of employment or self-employment (whether or not related to health or social care), showing beginning and end dates, (actual or approximated month and year), together with an explanation of periods of non-employment”. Not the last ten years. For a registered manager's own registration, CQC asks for work history from age 16 with any gap over four weeks explained.
8. Health: “Satisfactory information about any physical or mental health conditions which are relevant to the person's capability, after reasonable adjustments are made, to properly perform tasks which are intrinsic to their employment or appointment for the purposes of the regulated activity.”

The word doing the work throughout is “satisfactory”, and paragraph 9 defines it: “satisfactory” means “satisfactory in the opinion of the Commission”. The test is whether CQC would accept the evidence, not whether the provider was content with it at the time.

Volunteers. Since 15 January 2024, a volunteer does not need item 7, the full employment history, unless they are the individual or partner who is the provider, the nominated individual or the registered manager (Regulations 4, 6 and 7, named in 19(3A)). CQC's guidance summarises the exception as applying except where volunteers are “service providers, directors or registered managers”; directors are covered by Regulation 5(5) in any case, as above. Every other Schedule 3 item still applies to a volunteer, and CQC adds that “Providers may request employment history for volunteers where they consider this is necessary to the role.”

Other information the law requires. Regulation 19(3)(b) adds any other information an enactment requires the provider to keep. The most common addition to a care staff file is the right to work check: the Home Office's guidance on checking a job applicant's right to work tells employers to “record the date the check was made” and to “keep copies during the applicant’s employment and for 2 years after they stop working for you”.

Good character, competence and health: the three tests in 19(1)

Good character. The legal test is “good character”, not honesty alone. CQC's guidance says: “It is not possible to outline every character trait that a person should have, but we would expect to see that the processes followed take account of honesty, trust, reliability and respect.” It also says providers “must have robust processes and make every effort to gather all available information to confirm that the person is of good character, and have regard to the matters outlined in Schedule 4, Part 2 of the regulations”.

Schedule 4 Part 2 lists two good character matters: “Whether the person has been convicted in the United Kingdom of any offence or been convicted elsewhere of any offence which, if committed in any part of the United Kingdom, would constitute an offence”, and “Whether the person has been erased, removed or struck-off a register of professionals maintained by a regulator of health care or social work professionals.” Be precise about its reach. The Regulations make Schedule 4 Part 2 compulsory only for the people who run the provider – Regulation 7(3), for example, says that for a registered manager “the matters considered must include those listed in Part 2 of Schedule 4”. Regulation 19 does not mention Schedule 4; for staff, Part 2 arrives through CQC's guidance as a matter to have regard to. Part 1 of Schedule 4, the unfit person grounds, is a test for directors under Regulation 5(3)(e), not for staff.

A conviction is not an automatic bar under Regulation 19. CQC's guidance says: “If a provider considers that an applicant is suitable, despite them having information about anything set out in Schedule 3, the provider's reasons should be recorded for future reference.” Its FAQ adds that where a criminal record was reported, inspectors expect “evidence that any risks posed by the staff member have been considered and assessed”. The decision, who made it, what they weighed and any conditions attached (supervised shifts, no lone working) belong in the file.

Qualifications, competence, skills and experience. CQC's guidance says: “Providers should have systems in place to assess the competence of employees before they work unsupervised in a role. They must provide appropriate direct or indirect supervision until the person is assessed as competent to carry out the role.” And: “It is expected that providers that employ healthcare assistants and social care support workers should follow the Care Certificate standards to assess their competence.” The training and supervision that follow are Regulation 18's territory; see the Regulation 18 guide and the care home training matrix.

Professional registration. Under 19(4), a registered nurse, social worker, occupational therapist or other professional whose work or title requires registration must hold it. CQC's guidance says: “Providers must have a process to check that staff have appropriate and current registration with a professional regulator or, where applicable, an accredited voluntary register.” A check at appointment is not a process; registration lapses and conditions are added during employment.

Health. 19(1)(c) and Schedule 3 item 8 ask whether the person can perform tasks intrinsic to the work “after reasonable adjustments are made”. When to ask matters. Under section 60 of the Equality Act 2010, an employer “must not ask about the health of the applicant (B)– (a) before offering work to B”, except so far as the question is necessary for listed purposes, including “establishing whether B will be able to carry out a function that is intrinsic to the work concerned”. So the health questionnaire belongs after a conditional offer, not in the application pack; a narrow question about an intrinsic task, such as moving and handling, may come earlier.

Before the first shift, and after it

Regulation 19(3) says the Schedule 3 information “must be available”. CQC's guidance is more specific about timing: “Information about candidates set out in Schedule 3 of the regulations must be confirmed before they are employed.” That is CQC's guidance, not the regulation's words, but under section 25 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 it is taken into account in CQC's decisions and in proceedings, although failing to follow it “does not of itself make a person liable to any criminal or civil proceedings”. It is the starting position, and the one an inspector will hold a provider to.

The exception concerns the DBS check, and it is narrow. CQC's inspector FAQ, an older undated document that is still linked from the May 2025 guidance page, says: “Providers must be able to demonstrate sound reasons for not obtaining a full DBS check before a person takes up post, and also demonstrate they have assessed any potential risk.” It adds that “AdultFirst checks are for working with adults, and should not be relied upon routinely.” A start before the full check returns should therefore have on paper why it could not wait and what the risk assessment found, and, as good practice, what safeguards apply until the certificate arrives. A start that simply happened because the rota was short is the thing the FAQ is warning against.

Agency staff and checks done by others are the provider's responsibility too. CQC's guidance says: “Recruitment and/or checks on candidates may be carried out by a party other than the provider. In this case, providers must assure themselves that all checks are complete and satisfactory.” In practice that means confirmation for the named worker who is on shift, item by item, rather than a general statement that the agency vets its staff.

After the start, fitness is reviewed rather than assumed. CQC's guidance opens: “To meet this regulation, providers must operate robust recruitment procedures, including undertaking any relevant checks. They must have a procedure for ongoing monitoring of staff to make sure they remain able to meet the requirements, and they must have appropriate arrangements in place to deal with staff who are no longer fit to carry out the duties required of them.” And: “Providers must regularly review the fitness of employees.”

When a concern arises, Regulation 19(5) applies. CQC's guidance sets the pace and the steps:

• “Providers should respond without delay to concerns about a person's fitness or ability to carry out their duties. This includes responding immediately if there is an imminent risk to people working in and using the service.”
• “Where a person's fitness to carry out their role is being investigated, appropriate interim measures must be taken to minimise any risk to people using the service.”
• For a registered professional, 19(5)(b) requires the provider to inform their regulator. Beyond that, CQC's guidance says providers “must inform others as appropriate about concerns or findings relating to a person's fitness and must support any related enquiries and investigations that others have carried out”, and “may inform bodies such as professional regulators, police, and safeguarding authorities about concerns”.

A separate legal duty can also apply: where someone is removed from regulated activity because they harmed, or posed a risk of harm to, an adult or child, the provider may have to refer them to the Disclosure and Barring Service. When that duty bites and what to send is in the duty to refer guide.

What an inspector looks for, and what a breach leads to

Inspectors sample rather than read every file. CQC's FAQ says: “Inspectors do not need to look at all eight types of information at every inspection, but they do need to be assured that providers have this information.” It is direct about the consequence of gaps: “A failure to evidence safe recruitment practice is likely to result in a breach of regulation which could affect the rating under Safe, Effective and/or Well-led.”

Recruitment is a governance question as well. A written recruitment policy that follows Schedule 3, regular audits of a sample of staff files, and the action taken on what those audits find are also evidence under Regulation 17, good governance, which the Regulation 17 guide covers. Where CQC finds a breach of Regulation 19, its published inspection report names the regulation, and the provider is asked to say how it will put the breach right.

CQC currently assesses recruitment under the Safe and effective staffing quality statement in its single assessment framework, which expects “robust and safe recruitment practices to make sure that all staff, including agency staff and volunteers, are suitably experienced, competent and able to carry out their role”. In its consultation response of 25 March 2026, CQC said it will replace quality statements with key lines of enquiry, but its August 2026 update still describes piloting and sets no start date; Regulation 19 is unchanged either way.

A breach of Regulation 19 is not a criminal offence: Regulation 22 lists the offence regulations, and Regulation 19 is not among them. CQC's guidance says: “CQC cannot prosecute for a breach of this regulation or any of its parts, but we can take regulatory action.” CQC's enforcement policy runs from Action Plan requests and Warning Notices that require improvement to conditions, suspension or cancellation of registration that force it, as the Regulation 18 guide sets out. CQC's guidance adds: “If CQC considers that a breach of this regulation is also a breach of another regulation(s) that carries offence clauses, then we can move directly to prosecution without serving a Warning Notice.” A recruitment failure may therefore also be prosecuted under Regulation 12 (safe care and treatment) or Regulation 13 (safeguarding service users from abuse and improper treatment) where it results in avoidable harm or a significant risk of it. And at registration, “CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.”

The fitness decisions that never reach the staff file

A staff file holds the checks. It rarely holds the decisions around them, because those are made by message. The owner replies at ten at night that a new starter can begin shadow shifts before her DBS comes back. The agency confirms by text that the worker arriving in the morning has a current enhanced check. A deputy messages the manager that a new carer is not yet safe to work alone. A night senior sends a worried message about a colleague's conduct towards a resident.

Each of those is the evidence CQC's guidance asks for: the “reasons” for appointing despite Schedule 3 information that “should be recorded for future reference”, the assurance that checks done by another party are “complete and satisfactory”, the supervision “until the person is assessed as competent”, and the response “without delay” to a concern about fitness. When those messages sit in a consumer app on personal phones, the provider cannot produce them, and they leave with whoever leaves.

ComplyChat provides channels for those work conversations, with everyone added told that the channel is on the record, and a mobile number verified by SMS as the identity, so bank, agency and night staff with no work account can be in the same channel as the manager. Messages are recorded on the server as they are sent, and on paid plans, once the provider's Microsoft 365 tenant is connected, conversations are kept there, under the retention schedules the provider already runs. ComplyChat is not a recruitment, HR or DBS-checking system and does not hold the staff file; the Schedule 3 checks stay where they are.

A question for the next management meeting: for the last person who started before every check was back, could you show an inspector who decided, when, and why?

Questions people ask

What is regulation 19 according to CQC?

Regulation 19 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 is “Fit and proper persons employed”: everyone employed to carry on a regulated activity must be of good character, have the qualifications, competence, skills and experience the work needs, and be able by reason of their health, after reasonable adjustments, to do it. Providers must operate recruitment procedures that ensure this, hold the Schedule 3 information for each person, check professional registration and act when someone stops being fit.

What are CQC regulatory requirements?

The core requirements are the fundamental standards in regulations 9 to 20A of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, from person-centred care to the duty of candour; Regulation 19 is the recruitment standard among them. The CQC fundamental standards guide lists them all with the registration rules.

Does Regulation 19 apply to volunteers and agency staff?

Yes. Regulation 2 counts agency workers and volunteers as employed, and CQC says “person employed” includes volunteers, contractors, agency and bank staff. Since 15 January 2024 a volunteer does not need the full employment history unless Regulation 4, 6 or 7 applies – the individual or partner who is the provider, the nominated individual or the registered manager.

Can a care worker start before their DBS check comes back?

CQC's guidance says “Information about candidates set out in Schedule 3 of the regulations must be confirmed before they are employed.” Its older inspector FAQ adds that providers “must be able to demonstrate sound reasons for not obtaining a full DBS check before a person takes up post, and also demonstrate they have assessed any potential risk”, so any exception has to be a recorded, risk-assessed decision, not a default.

Is a breach of Regulation 19 a criminal offence?

No. Regulation 19 is not among the offences in Regulation 22, and CQC “cannot prosecute for a breach of this regulation or any of its parts, but we can take regulatory action.” Where the same facts also breach an offence regulation, such as Regulation 12 or 13 where avoidable harm or a significant risk of it results, CQC can move directly to prosecution.

How long should recruitment records be kept?

Neither Regulation 19 nor Schedule 3 sets a period: Regulation 19(3) requires the information to “be available” for each person employed. The Home Office tells employers to keep right to work copies during employment and for 2 years after it ends; set the rest in a retention schedule, using the care records retention guide and the guide to how long to keep employee records.

Official guidance and your next step

The primary sources are Regulation 19 and Schedule 3 on legislation.gov.uk, which carry the 2024 amendments; CQC's guidance on Regulation 19; and CQC's inspector FAQs on Regulation 19 (undated, and older than the 2024 amendments). Quotations are from those pages as published on 28 October 2026.

This guide is a summary for providers in England, not legal advice about a particular recruitment decision, inspection or enforcement action. The CQC fundamental standards guide sets Regulation 19 among the other regulations.

Then do one thing: take the files of your three most recent starters – ideally one employee, one agency or bank worker and one volunteer – and check each against the eight Schedule 3 items, asking of each whether it is there, dated and satisfactory. Where anyone started before a check was back, find the written reasons. If the answer is “on someone's phone”, that is the gap to close first.