Terms and conditions

Page last updated: 4 July 2022

Using our site

The CQC website is maintained for your personal use and viewing. Access and use by you of this site constitutes acceptance by you of our Terms and Conditions, which take effect from the date of first use.

Copyright

The material featured on this site is subject to CQC copyright protection unless otherwise indicated.

CQC copyright protected material may be used in accordance with the Open Government Licence for Public Sector Information if it has been:

published on this website
published elsewhere by CQC
made publicly available under the Freedom of Information Act 2000
or otherwise made publicly available with the consent of CQC.

Permission to reproduce the CQC protected material does not extend to any material on this site that is identified as being the copyright of a third party. Authorisation to reproduce such material must be obtained from the copyright holders concerned.

Use of the CQC logo

CQC does not permit external organisations to use its logo unless they are registered providers using the logo as part of the display of their CQC performance assessment ratings, using official graphics supplied by CQC.

Other exceptions for the use of the logo might include partner organisations that work closely with us on specific projects, where we may grant permission for its logo to be used. This is decided on a case-by-case basis and written permission must be received prior to the use of the logo.

The CQC logo is a registered trademark and is protected under trademark law. If an external party uses it without permission, this constitutes infringement of CQC’s trademark.

Our policy on the use of the logo is designed to prevent the public from being misled, as they often see a regulator’s logo as a mark of quality. For example, an unregistered service may be using the CQC logo to imply its endorsement. Therefore, only registered providers are allowed to use the logo in the context of displaying their CQC performance assessment rating. Additionally, registered providers who wish to show to the public that they are regulated by CQC are also allowed to display an official image supplied by CQC.

Disclaimer

The CQC website and material relating to the Care Quality Commission, information, products and services (or to third party information, products and services), is provided 'as is', without any representation or endorsement made and without warranty of any kind whether express or implied, including but not limited to the implied warranties of satisfactory quality, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement, compatibility, security and accuracy.

We do not warrant that the functions contained in the material contained in this site will be uninterrupted or error free, that defects will be corrected, or that this site or the server that makes it available are free of viruses or represent the full functionality, accuracy, or reliability of the materials.

In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including, without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damages whatsoever arising from use or loss of use of, data or profits arising out of or in connection with the use of the CQC website.

Virus protection

We make every effort to check and test material at all stages of production. It is always wise for you to run an anti-virus program on all material downloaded from the Internet.

We cannot accept any responsibility for any loss, disruption or damage to your data or computer system which may occur whilst using material derived from this website.

CQC linking policy

Links from your website to the CQC website

You are welcome to link to the CQC website. If you are a registered provider with a CQC rating, your ratings display must link to the relevant page(s) on the CQC website. However, please ensure you comply with the following conditions:

You must not imply in any way that the Care Quality Commission endorses your organisation.
You may not use the Care Quality Commission logo without written agreement from us (unless you are a registered provider displaying CQC ratings on your website(s) – see 'Use of the CQC logo' above.
It is your responsibility to ensure deep-links to the CQC website are kept updated. We will not notify you if we move content.

Links from the CQC website to your website

At this time, CQC only links to organisations that fit the following criteria:

Listing and linking of external websites should not be taken as endorsement of any kind.
External websites must have a clear aim, be highly relevant to the CQC audience and must, in the CQC's opinion, contain quality content.
Government and public sector agency sites – i.e. departments or non-departmental government bodies
Statutory bodies
Educational establishments
Sites that have some connection with government or established authority – e.g. BBC, Stationery Office
Selected voluntary bodies and charities with advocacy functions of national importance
Selected trade, professional associations and unions.

Any links we add to our site must be directly relevant to specific sections or pages of the CQC website.

CQC reserves the right to refuse or include links to any website.

Links must be directly relevant to specific sections or pages of the CQC website.
Sites for which there are grounds for doubting the accuracy of the content will be excluded. A site may be excluded if the professional reputation of the site owner is unknown and/or there are grounds for doubting the accuracy of the content or suspecting critical bias.
Sites that push particular agenda or interests that might run counter to government policy or main messages will be excluded.
Private sector sites that promote company products or services will not normally be included.

Although we will endeavour to maintain links to other websites, we cannot guarantee that these links will work all the time and we have no control over the availability or reliability of linked pages.

Case studies

The case studies we share are examples of innovation or good practice. We may have seen these during inspections or people may have told us about them. Each one describes what we saw or were told and will not be updated.

Case studies on our website may include information about a product, supplier, service or publication. We provide these descriptions, references or links for information only. They do not imply any endorsement by CQC. They are not intended to be advice you should rely on. You should obtain your own professional or specialist advice.

We do not accredit, endorse, approve or recommend the products or services of any external organisation. We are not affiliated to any commercial organisations.

Using a product, supplier or service referred to in the case studies may help improve the quality of care. It will not affect our assessments or judgments about the quality of health or care services. It will not guarantee compliance with the fundamental standards.