National minimum standards for home care
These standards were published by the Secretary of State for Health in accordance with section 23 of the Care Standards Act 2000.
Regulation applies to all agencies (both directly provided and purchased) which provide personal care for persons living in their own homes who by reasons of illness, infirmity or disability are unable to provide it for themselves without assistance.
The CSA 2000 did not include a definition of "personal care" but its established, ordinary meaning includes four main types of care which are:
- assistance with bodily functions such as feeding, bathing and toileting
- care falling just short of assistance with bodily functions involving physical and intimate touching, including activities such as helping a person get out of a bath and helping them to get dressed.
- non-physical care, such as advice, encouragement and supervision relating to the foregoing, such as prompting a person to take a bath and supervising them during this
- emotional and psychological support, including the promotion of social functioning, behaviour management, and assistance with cognitive functions
It is the Department of Health’s view that only the types of personal care set out in the first above will give rise to registration as a domiciliary care agency under the CSA 2000.
The National Minimum Standards for Domiciliary Care Regulations are inspected by the Commission for Social Care Inspection.
Local contact details
Commission for Social Care Inspection
Wolverhampton Area Office
2nd Floor
St. David's Court
Union Street
Wolverhampton
WV1 3JE
Tel No – 019202 873720
Fax No – 01902 873730
Website: Commission for Social Care Inspection (external link)
Registration documents
All home care providers are compelled by the NMS to produce the following documents
- service users guide
- statement of purpose
Commission for Social Care Inspection - Registration Reports
The CSCI will produce a registration report after they have inspected an agency and this will be available on their website.