As a private GP, will the CQC want to inspect me?
Why and when the CQC assesses private GP services, what happens on the day, what inspectors look at, and what changes at the end of 2026.
- England
The short answer
Yes, if you run a CQC-registered private GP service in England, it will be assessed and rated. The CQC decides when by risk, so a new service can expect a first assessment after registration and further assessments when there is concern or when a planned one falls due. If you work under another provider’s registration, that provider is assessed, and your work may be looked at as part of it.
Key points
- Every registered private GP service, including online services, is assessed and rated against the five key questions.
- Timing is risk-based. Assessments are planned or responsive, and the CQC can visit without notice if it has concerns.
- Evidence comes from on-site visits, off-site review of your processes and records, and feedback from patients, staff and partners.
- Inspectors of private doctor services often focus on safeguarding, identity checks, prescribing, record keeping and sharing information with the NHS GP.
- The CQC plans to replace its single assessment framework with sector frameworks from the end of 2026. Check which one applies before you prepare.
Who the CQC assesses
The CQC assesses registered providers. If your private GP service is registered in England, whether you are a sole trader, a partnership or a company, it will be assessed and given a rating. That applies to face-to-face clinics and to online primary care services.
If you do not hold your own registration, the position depends on why:
- Employed or engaged by a registered clinic or online provider. The provider is assessed. Inspectors may review your consultations and records, speak to you and check your training and recruitment file.
- Practising privileges at a registered hospital or clinic. The host is assessed, including how it grants and reviews practising privileges. Expect it to ask you for evidence such as indemnity, appraisal and DBS.
- Relying on the doctor exemption. If you are genuinely exempt from registration, the CQC has nothing to assess. The exemption is narrow, so check it in do I need to be registered with the CQC?
Why the CQC inspects private GPs
The CQC’s job is to check that registered services meet the fundamental standards in law and to tell the public how good they are. Private patients have no NHS commissioner watching over the service, so the CQC’s assessment and published rating are often the only independent check on quality that a patient can see. Inspectors look for the same outcomes they expect in NHS general practice, adapted to how private services work.
When it will happen
Under its current approach the CQC does not work to a fixed inspection cycle. It says the frequency of assessment depends on the information it receives and the evidence it collects, and each assessment is either:
- planned, with the order decided by the CQC’s view of risk, or
- responsive, triggered by information of concern, such as a complaint, a whistleblowing report or a notification.
A newly registered service has no rating until its first assessment. The CQC has said it will publish more detailed schedules for planned assessments by sector. After a period of delays the CQC has been increasing the number of assessments it completes, but the gap between registration and a first rating still varies. You cannot choose the timing, so run the service as if an assessment could start at any point.
What happens during an assessment
- Notice. The CQC emails you when an assessment starts and may ask for evidence straight away. Planned site visits are usually announced, but the CQC can visit without notice, for example in response to a specific concern.
- Evidence gathering. Off site, inspectors review your policies, audits, records and data. On site, they observe the environment and equipment, and talk to you, your staff and patients. For online services most evidence is gathered remotely.
- Feedback. Where possible you get feedback at the end of the site visit.
- Draft report. You get the chance to check it for factual accuracy and completeness before publication.
- Publication and rating. The report and rating appear on the CQC website. You must then display the rating at your premises and on your website.
What inspectors look at
The CQC assesses five key questions: safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led. Under the current framework each has quality statements, and evidence is grouped into six categories: people’s experience, feedback from staff and leaders, feedback from partners, observation, processes and outcomes. The CQC publishes which categories it uses for independent doctors, a group that covers private GP practices, clinics, online primary care and slimming clinics.
In private GP services, inspectors commonly ask about:
- how you confirm a patient’s identity, particularly for remote consultations, and how you safeguard children and vulnerable adults
- prescribing, including high-risk medicines, monitoring and remote prescribing
- how you share information with the patient’s NHS GP, and what you do when a patient declines consent
- clinical records that are complete, contemporaneous and secure
- significant events, complaints and what changed as a result
- clinical audit and other quality improvement. See how to run a clinical audit
- recruitment checks, training and appraisal for everyone who works for you
- emergency equipment and medicines, infection control, and management of test results.
How software can help you keep this evidence ready is covered in systems that help you prepare for a CQC inspection. The wider framework of policies and oversight is explained in what is clinical governance?
To check your readiness against these areas, try our free CQC inspection readiness scorecard.
After the assessment
If the CQC finds breaches of the regulations, it can require improvement, impose conditions on your registration or take further enforcement action. A requires improvement or inadequate rating stays on the public record until you are reassessed. If you think the CQC did not follow its own process in reaching a rating, you can ask for a rating process review within 15 working days of publication. It does not re-examine the evidence, so raise errors of fact at the draft report stage.
Frameworks are changing
Following independent reviews, the CQC consulted on replacing its single assessment framework with four sector-specific frameworks, one of them for primary care and community services. The drafts reintroduce key lines of enquiry and make judgements at key question level rather than by scoring. The CQC piloted the new approach alongside existing inspections from June 2026, and said it would publish the final frameworks in summer 2026 and start using them at the end of the year. At the time of review the single assessment framework was still in force, so check the CQC website before you prepare evidence.
In Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland
The CQC only covers England. Private GP services are inspected by Healthcare Improvement Scotland, Healthcare Inspectorate Wales or RQIA in Northern Ireland, each with its own standards and inspection programme.
Tools that can help
Frequently asked questions
Will the CQC inspect me before I open?
Registration usually involves an interview and, for most new registrations, a visit to your premises. That is part of assessing your application. It is not a rated inspection, which comes after you start seeing patients.
Can I refuse an unannounced visit?
No. Obstructing entry and inspection is an offence under the Health and Social Care Act 2008. If a visit is genuinely impossible, for example because no clinic is running, explain and agree how the CQC can gather its evidence.
Do online-only private GP services get inspected?
Yes. Online primary care services are registered, assessed and rated. Inspectors review records, policies and prescribing remotely and may visit the location the service is run from.
How long does a rating last?
A rating stays in place until the CQC reassesses the service. There is no fixed expiry date, which is why an early poor rating can affect you for some time.
