Quick summary
Fifteen standards, covering everything from safeguarding to moving someone safely. It is done on the job over about twelve weeks, it is paid, your employer should cover the cost, and you do not need it before you apply.
What it is
The Care Certificate is a set of nationally agreed standards setting out the knowledge, skills and behaviours expected of new health and social care workers. It was introduced in 2015 by Skills for Care, Skills for Health and Health Education England, following the Cavendish Review.
It is not a qualification in the traditional sense, and it is not a course you pass before applying for work. It is your induction, assessed in the workplace while you are being paid.
Skills for Care recommends completing it within twelve weeks of starting. It has no expiry date and it is portable, so if you have already done it with another employer you should not have to repeat the whole thing.
The fifteen standards
# | Standard | What it covers in practice |
|---|---|---|
1 | Understand your role | What the job is, and what it is not |
2 | Your personal development | Supervision, reflection, keeping skills current |
3 | Duty of care | Your responsibility to act in someone’s best interests, and what to do about concerns |
4 | Equality and diversity | Treating people as individuals |
5 | Work in a person-centred way | Building care around the person’s preferences and routine |
6 | Communication | Including communicating with people who have dementia, hearing loss or aphasia |
7 | Privacy and dignity | The practical side of personal care |
8 | Fluids and nutrition | Making sure people eat and drink enough, and spotting when they are not |
9 | Mental health, dementia and learning disability | Including capacity and consent |
10 | Safeguarding adults | Recognising abuse and neglect, and reporting it |
11 | Safeguarding children | What to do if you have concerns about a child in a household |
12 | Basic life support | Practical, taught face to face |
13 | Health and safety | Including moving and handling, which is assessed practically |
14 | Handling information | Records, confidentiality and data protection |
15 | Infection prevention and control | Hand hygiene, gloves, aprons, spillages |
You may see some training providers marketing sixteen standards, and a new Care Certificate Qualification was being introduced during 2026. The core fifteen remain the recognised framework, and what matters is that you can demonstrate competence across all of them.
How it is actually assessed
Two parts:
Knowledge, usually through a workbook or e-learning: written answers showing you understand duty of care, safeguarding, confidentiality and so on.
Practice, through observation. An assessor watches you doing the thing: moving someone safely, washing someone with dignity, handling a medicines record. Knowledge-based standards can be covered online. Practical competence has to be seen.
Your assessor is someone competent to assess, typically a senior carer, field supervisor or the registered manager. It is not an exam with a pass mark, and it is not something you can complete in a weekend online, whatever the adverts suggest.
What twelve weeks looks like alongside the job
- Week one: classroom or online induction, covering the knowledge-heavy standards, plus practical moving and handling and basic life support.
- Weeks one to three: shadowing an experienced carer, which is where several standards are observed in real visits.
- Weeks three to twelve: your own round, with the workbook completed gradually and observations signed off as they happen.
- Throughout: supervision sessions, where you raise what you are unsure about.
Our guide to becoming a carer with no experience sets out the whole first month.
Who pays
You should not pay for the Care Certificate. It is induction training, your employer should provide it, and the time spent on it should be paid.
There is a market in online courses selling “Care Certificate” training to job seekers. You do not need one to apply, and buying one will not substitute for workplace assessment, because the practical standards can only be signed off by an assessor who has watched you work.
If an employer asks you to pay for it, or to complete it unpaid in your own time, ask why.
Where it leads
The Care Certificate gets you working safely. It does not itself lift your pay grade.
The next steps are the Level 2 and Level 3 diplomas in adult care, which are recognised qualifications and tend to support progression to senior carer and team leader roles, and eventually the Level 5 leadership qualification needed to become a registered manager. We cover that ladder separately.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need the Care Certificate before applying?
No. It is completed after you start, as part of induction.
How long does it take?
Skills for Care recommends within twelve weeks of starting, combining training with supervised practice.
Is it a qualification?
Not in the formal sense. It is a set of standards demonstrating you are safe to work unsupervised. The Level 2 and 3 diplomas are the recognised qualifications.
Is it a legal requirement?
It is not law, and it is a strong expectation from CQC and Skills for Care, and most employers treat it as a condition of employment.
Can I take it with me to another job?
It is designed to be portable. A new employer will usually want to verify it and check your competence rather than start again.
What if I struggle with the written parts?
Say so early. Assessors can adapt how evidence is gathered, and plenty of excellent carers find the paperwork harder than the work.
What we provide
- Induction training and the Care Certificate, paid, with no cost to you.
- Shadowing with an experienced carer before you work alone, which is also what NICE recommends.
- Condition-specific training in dementia, Parkinson’s, stroke recovery and complex care, designed and overseen by clinicians.
- £14.70 an hour during probation, £15.70 after, plus 35p a mile and paid travel time.
- Carer turnover of 12 per cent, against 23.7 per cent across the sector (Skills for Care, 2025).
How to apply
Call us on 01625 720157 and ask about caregiver roles. No qualifications needed, and no CV required for the first conversation.
Visiting Angels Cheshire East covers Macclesfield, Wilmslow, Knutsford, Congleton, Alsager, Buxton, Whaley Bridge, Leek, Biddulph and Kidsgrove.
Authored by Kim Blissett, Registered Manager, Visiting Angels Cheshire East.
Published 27 September 2026. Last updated 27 September 2026.
This article is general information about care sector training and is not employment advice, nor a contractual offer of employment. The Care Certificate framework is maintained nationally and is subject to change, including the introduction of a new Care Certificate Qualification; check Skills for Care for the current position. Pay rates and terms are correct at the date of publication. To the fullest extent permitted by law, GB Care at Home Ltd accepts no liability for any loss arising from reliance on this article.
