Rated Good, Still a Training Gap: What CQC Found in Good Care Homes

Part of the CQC Training Gap Index 2026, Kasorb's analysis of what CQC inspectors wrote about staff training in care home reports.

A Good rating for Safe doesn't mean inspectors found nothing to fix. In 288 of the 2,981 care homes rated Good for Safe since December 2023 (about 1 in 10), CQC inspectors still recorded a gap in staff training, competency checks or induction. Most of these gaps were small and quick to close. Many were the kind a home only finds when someone else looks at the training matrix.

What inspectors found in Good homes

The gaps in Good homes looked different from those in homes rated Requires improvement or Inadequate. They fell into three broad groups:

• General compliance (about a third). Refreshers overdue for a few staff, overall compliance below the provider's own target, or induction records not signed off. No single subject named.
• Training for the people living there (about a third). Staff supporting someone with epilepsy, diabetes, dysphagia, a catheter, dementia or distressed behaviour, without training in that need. Learning disability and autism training came up most often here.
• Medicines (16%). The most common named subject, as it was at every rating. Usually competency checks that hadn't been repeated, or didn't cover a specific route such as patches or rescue medicines.

In a further 28 Good homes, staff had done the training but inspectors found it wasn't showing in practice, most often with the Mental Capacity Act.

In inspectors' words

From CQC reports for homes rated Good for Safe (no home named):

• "Some refresher training was overdue."
• "The service's overall training compliance was 83.10%, which was below the provider's expected standard."
• "Although employed staff had competency checks completed these had not been reviewed annually as stated by the home’s medicines policy."
• "However, where people experienced specific health conditions such as epilepsy or diabetes, staff had not received specific training in these conditions."
• "Checks and induction records relating to agency staff were not always consistently documented."
• "However, not all staff had completed training in autism and learning disability which has been a legal requirement for all services since 2022."

Where it happens most

Among homes rated Good for Safe, inspectors recorded a training gap in 13% in the North West (33 of 247) and 6% in London (16 of 286). Other regions sat between about 6% and 12%. Regional differences may partly reflect how often and how recently homes were inspected, so treat them as a pointer, not a ranking.

Why it matters for a Good home

A training gap rarely costs a Good home its rating on its own. But it is the kind of finding that turns up in the report, gets quoted back at the next assessment, and is easy to prevent. Inspectors also check that training matches the people you support now, not the people you supported when the training plan was written.

What managers can do now

• Run your training matrix against everyone on the rota, including bank, agency and night staff, and book anyone overdue.
• When someone new moves in, check their care plan for needs your team hasn't been trained in, such as epilepsy and rescue medicines, diabetes, catheter care, dysphagia or positive behaviour support.
• Repeat medicines competency checks every year, and make sure they cover every route your staff actually use.
• Get induction records signed and dated before new or agency staff work unsupervised.
• Check your learning disability and autism training meets the requirement for your service.

How Kasorb can help

Kasorb's trainers come to your service and build sessions around the people you support, from epilepsy awareness and positive behaviour support to dementia awareness and medication administration. If you're choosing a provider, our guide on how to choose a care home training provider lists the questions worth asking.

About this analysis

Based on the latest CQC report for every care home rated Good or Outstanding for Safe between December 2023 and September 2026 with a report in CQC's current format: 2,997 homes. A home counts as having a training gap where inspectors recorded missing, incomplete or out-of-date training, competency checks or induction at that assessment. 157 of these homes were coded a second time, blind, with 98–99% agreement. Full method and figures in the CQC Training Gap Index 2026. Contains CQC report text, © Care Quality Commission, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

FAQs

Can a care home rated Good still have training gaps?

Yes. In our analysis, inspectors recorded a staff training gap in about 1 in 10 care homes rated Good for Safe since December 2023 (288 of 2,981).

What training gaps do inspectors find in Good care homes?

Most often overdue refreshers and general compliance, then training for specific needs of the people living there (such as learning disability and autism, epilepsy or dementia), then medicines competency checks.

Does a training gap mean a Good home is unsafe?

No. It means inspectors recorded a shortfall in training, competency checks or induction at that assessment. Most were small and the home was still rated Good.