Regulation 19 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 names no specific qualification a care worker in England must hold. Regulation 19 says everyone employed in a regulated activity must "have the qualifications, competence, skills and experience which are necessary for the work to be performed by them", and Regulation 18(2)(a) requires the training and supervision their duties need. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) expects employers of social care support workers to follow the Care Certificate standards to assess competence. The Level 2 Adult Social Care Certificate is a separate qualification that Skills for Care says is not mandatory at the moment.
This page covers adult social care services that CQC regulates in England, checked on 9 October 2026. Training topics are in mandatory training for care workers in the UK, and the 16 standards in the Care Certificate standards list.
Can you work in care without qualifications?
Yes, on the pages read for this guide: no regulation makes a named qualification a condition of starting, though Regulation 19(1)(b) still requires the qualifications "necessary for the work to be performed by them". Skills for Care's care worker careers page says your employer "might ask" for qualifications showing "good English and number skills", such as GCSE English and maths, and that a social care qualification "may be beneficial" but can be completed once you are hired.
If you have never worked in care, the Care Certificate standards are written for you. The Care Certificate FAQ names care workers joining "without any past training or sector experience".
If you are hiring someone without a qualification, the checks and the supervision still apply. CQC's Regulation 19 guidance lets a provider take someone on "with the expectation that they will become competent within a specified timeframe once in the role", and expects competence to be assessed "before they work unsupervised in a role".
What does Regulation 19 say about qualifications?
Regulation 19(1) sets 3 conditions: good character; the necessary qualifications, competence, skills and experience; and health that lets the person do the work "after reasonable adjustments are made". Paragraph (2) requires recruitment procedures that check those conditions, and paragraph (3) requires the information in Schedule 3 to be available for each person employed.
The evidence of qualifications sits in Schedule 3, and even there the word is "any".
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.
The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, Schedule 3, paragraph 6
Paragraph 9(b) says "satisfactory" means "satisfactory in the opinion of the Commission".
Where a qualification is required "either by law or by a provider", CQC's guidance says providers should have the means to check that employees hold it. If you make a Level 2 a condition of the job, keep a copy of each worker's certificate on file, the documentary evidence Schedule 3 paragraph 6 asks for where reasonably practicable to obtain.
Regulation 18(2)(a) requires the support, training, professional development, supervision and appraisal that each person's duties need. For that training, read the guides to CQC training requirements for domiciliary care and CQC registered manager training requirements. CQC's guidance says it cannot prosecute for a breach of Regulation 19 alone, though it can take regulatory action.
Does CQC expect the Care Certificate?
Yes, in guidance rather than in the regulation. CQC's guidance on Regulation 19(1)(b), last updated 16 May 2025, says: "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 16 standards cover knowledge and observed practice and are "recommended and non-accredited", says the October 2025 FAQ from NHS England, Skills for Care and Skills for Health. Regulated professionals such as nurses "do not need to also achieve the Care Certificate", and cooks, cleaners and drivers do not need to complete it.
For home care, the Care Certificate FAQ says regulated providers are "expected to assess the competence of the new support worker before they start delivering care out of line of sight of a more experienced colleague." If your new carer has a solo visit booked for day 3, the observation comes first.
No regulation read for this guide sets a duration, and the 2025 assessor and employer guide leaves the length of induction to the employer. The familiar 12 weeks appears in a 2015 announcement, when the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said new workers "will be expected to get a Care Certificate within 12 weeks of employment".
NHS Employers still gave 12 weeks for support workers in April 2025. None of the Skills for Care or CQC pages read here gives a deadline in weeks.
Care Certificate or Level 2 qualification?
What is the Level 2 Adult Social Care Certificate?
The Level 2 is a qualification "accredited and regulated by Ofqual" and "requiring observational assessment", built on the same 16 standards and launched on 3 June 2024. Skills for Care calls it "the recognised and preferred standard for care professionals entering the sector" and has withdrawn approval for the Level 2 Diploma in Care it replaces, though an existing diploma "remains a credible and reliable source of prior qualification achievement".
Skills for Care's March 2026 factsheet for care providers says "The qualification will not be mandatory at the moment." and "This will not replace the Care Certificate standards".
If you are a new learner, expect around 6 to 8 months, within a maximum total qualification time of 369 hours. Skills for Care's Level 2 page, which shows no date, says 54 percent of direct care workers do not hold a level 2 or above qualification.
The minimum age depends on which page you read: "over the age of 19 years" on the web page, "aged 16+" in the factsheet, which points learners under 19 to the Level 2 Adult Care Worker apprenticeship for English and maths. Ask the learning provider before you enroll a 17 year old.
Funding runs through DHSC's Learning and Development Support Scheme (LDSS): up to £1,540 per learner, 60 percent at the start and 40 percent on completion, and none when the qualification is taken inside the apprenticeship. DHSC's guide for employers gives each part a 3 month claim window, asks for an up to date Adult Social Care Workforce Data Set (ASC-WDS) account, and excludes registered nurses. The factsheet adds that the pot is limited.
How does it differ from the Care Certificate?
If you are hiring, the Care Certificate is your induction standard. The Level 2 is a qualification the worker keeps.
| What | Care Certificate standards | Level 2 Adult Social Care Certificate |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | 16 standards, "recommended and non-accredited" | Accredited qualification regulated by Ofqual, built on the same 16 standards |
| Assessment | Knowledge plus skills observed in real work by an assessor the employer judges competent; no assessor qualification required; no end test required | Formal assessment by qualified assessors, with an initial assessment and recognition of prior learning |
| Who awards or delivers it | The employer awards it after all 16 standards are met | A learning provider approved by an awarding organization; the awarding organization monitors quality |
| Cost and funding | Knowledge elearning on the elearning for healthcare platform is free to access; no funding route found in the pages read for this guide, and DHSC's eligible course list was read only in part | Up to £1,540 per learner through the LDSS, as a standalone qualification only |
| Time | Over the first period of employment, set by the employer; 12 weeks in DHSC's 2015 announcement | Around 6 to 8 months for a new learner; up to 369 hours total qualification time |
| Who it suits | Workers new to care with no past training or sector experience | Open to "eligible non-regulated care staff", new or experienced; minimum age differs between Skills for Care pages |
| Portability and evidence kept | Certificate and portfolio go to the worker; the employer keeps records "for regulation and audit purposes"; a new employer still checks the skills are current | Described as "accredited, portable" |
| Required, expected or optional | Expected by CQC guidance for social care support workers | "will not be mandatory at the moment" |
Skills for Care's recommended routes say you might enroll a worker on the Level 2 right away, "or you could wait until the worker has passed their probation period".
Where do DBS checks and registrations fit?
Is a DBS check part of a care worker's qualifications?
No. CQC's Safe and effective staffing statement lists "Safe recruitment (including DBS)" and "Skills and qualifications/revalidation" as separate subtopics. In Schedule 3, paragraph 2 asks for a copy of a criminal record certificate and paragraph 3 for an enhanced one, each where required for an exempted question under the Police Act 1997, and qualification evidence is a separate item, paragraph 6.
This page does not say which level fits which role. CQC's Safe and effective staffing statement lists the Disclosure and Barring Service's eligibility guidance among the best practice guidance it expects providers to follow, so check the level there.
The rest of Schedule 3 makes up your day one file: photo identity, conduct in earlier care work, why a job with children or vulnerable adults ended, a full employment history with gaps explained, and relevant health information. CQC's guidance expects all of the Schedule 3 information confirmed before a person is employed, and expects you to assure yourself that checks carried out by another party are complete.
Which care roles need a professional registration?
Regulation 19(4) requires registration with the relevant professional body where an enactment requires it for the work or the title. CQC's guidance expects a process to check the registration is current.
Skills for Care calls the staff the Level 2 serves "non-regulated care staff", and none of the pages read for this guide names a register that care workers must join. CQC's guidance mentions "an accredited voluntary register" without saying which staff it covers.
Registered nurses are one example. The Care Certificate standards list "Regulated professionals" such as doctors, nurses, social workers and occupational therapists as people who "do not need to also achieve the Care Certificate".
CQC's Safe and effective staffing statement lists the Nursing and Midwifery Order 2001 and the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) Code. Regulation 19(5) requires you to inform the regulator if a registered professional you employ no longer meets the fitness criteria.
What does CQC look at under Safe and effective staffing?
The quality statement, last updated 22 February 2024, reads: "We make sure there are enough qualified, skilled and experienced people, who receive effective support, supervision and development." The statement's subtopics include "Safe recruitment (including DBS)", "Skills and qualifications/revalidation" and "Learning, development and competency", and it lists Regulations 12, 18 and 19 as related.
On training, the statement says "Staff receive training appropriate and relevant to their role." It names no certificate. CQC's page mapping its evidence categories to this statement was not read for this guide, so what an assessor asks you to show stays open here.
How do you build each worker's qualification file?
Build one file per worker that answers Schedule 3 before the start date and the Care Certificate by the end of induction. Tools: the standards, self assessment tool and certificate template to download from Skills for Care's Care Certificate page, the Care Certificate program the FAQ calls free to access on the elearning for healthcare platform for the knowledge parts, and a spreadsheet.
Day one, before any unsupervised work
- Confirm Schedule 3 before the start date, including copies of any qualification relevant to the duties where reasonably practicable to obtain.
- Check the qualifications you set yourself. File the certificate for any Level 2 or GCSE you make a condition of the job: CQC's guidance says a provider that requires a qualification should have the means to check that employees hold it.
- Run the self assessment with the new starter before induction, and for an experienced starter check that skills are current and plan for the gaps.
- Write the supervision rule down: no lone work until an assessor has observed the tasks. CQC's Regulation 18 guidance expects supervision, where appropriate, until staff can show the competence to work unsupervised.
Weeks 1 to 12, or your own induction length
- Work through the 16 standards. Knowledge by discussion, written answers or elearning with its own assessment; skills observed in real work, simulated only where real work cannot show them, such as basic life support.
- Sign off after all 16, on the national template the FAQ strongly recommends, and give the worker the certificate and access to the portfolio.
- Decide on the Level 2 at once or after probation, and diary both 3 month LDSS claim windows: the 60 part runs from the later of payment and start, the 40 part from completion.
The record
- Keep one file per worker for regulation and audit: Schedule 3 evidence, qualification copies, the self assessment, signed observation records, the certificate and supervision notes. Skills for Care says employers have the responsibility to "check and evidence that workers are competent to carry out their role on an ongoing basis".
| Task | Who usually does it | Rough time |
|---|---|---|
| Schedule 3 file and qualification copies (steps 1 and 2) | Registered manager or whoever holds HR records | 1 to 2 hours per starter, plus the wait for the criminal record certificate |
| Self assessment and supervision plan (steps 3 and 4) | Manager with the new starter | 1 hour |
| Care Certificate (steps 5 and 6) | New starter, with an assessor | Set by the employer; 12 weeks in DHSC's 2015 announcement |
| Level 2 Adult Social Care Certificate (step 7) | Worker, with an approved learning provider | Around 6 to 8 months for a new learner |
| File upkeep (step 8) | Manager or supervisor | 15 minutes after each supervision |
The Care Certificate and Level 2 times come from the assessor guide, DHSC and Skills for Care. The rest are working estimates for a single service, not taken from any source read for this guide.
Which hiring file mistakes cost the most?
- Counting elearning certificates as the Care Certificate. Certificates of attendance, or eLearning without summative assessment, are not evidence toward it, says the assessor guide.
- A solo visit before the observation. The FAQ says regulated providers are "expected to assess the competence of the new support worker" before they start delivering care "out of line of sight of a more experienced colleague".
- The logo on a partial certificate. The FAQ allows a certificate for completed elements, but without the Care Certificate logo.
- Lost LDSS funding: the apprenticeship route, a missed 3 month window, or an out of date ASC-WDS account.
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Other questions about care worker qualifications
Do you need qualifications to work in a care home?
No regulation read for this guide names one. Regulation 19 asks for "the qualifications, competence, skills and experience which are necessary for the work", and Skills for Care says a social care qualification can be completed once you are hired.
Is the Care Certificate a qualification?
No. The Care Certificate FAQ calls the standards "recommended and non-accredited"; the Level 2 is the accredited qualification built on them.
Is the Level 2 Adult Social Care Certificate mandatory?
Not at the moment, says Skills for Care's March 2026 factsheet for care providers.
Can a care worker start before the checks come back?
Not on CQC's guidance, which expects Schedule 3 information, including a criminal record certificate where one is required, to be confirmed "before they are employed".
Does an experienced carer have to redo the Care Certificate?
Not automatically. The Care Certificate FAQ says to check that skills and knowledge are current, using the self assessment tool, and the employer may require the full standards if appropriate for the worker's learning needs.