About this site

Purpose

UK Care Reference is an independent, educational reference covering the knowledge that underpins adult social care in England: the law, the regulations, the standards and the everyday good practice. It is written for care workers, senior carers, coordinators, team leaders, registered managers and anyone else who wants clear answers without wading through legislation.

How it is written

Every page is written in original words, in plain British English, and links to the official source — legislation.gov.uk, CQC, GOV.UK, NICE, SCIE, Skills for Care, the HSE, NHS England and the ombudsman services — so you can verify anything that matters. Nothing here is copied from those sources; everything here points to them.

Each topic page shows a "last reviewed" date. Where the law is in flux — as it is in 2026 around deprivation of liberty, data protection and CQC's assessment framework — pages say so plainly and point to where the current position lives.

What this site is not

It is not legal advice, clinical advice, or a substitute for your organisation's policies, procedures and training. It carries no adverts, no sponsorship, no tracking, and it collects no personal data. There is no contact form and no mailing list. If a page here and an official source ever disagree, trust the official source — and assume the guidance may have changed since the page was last reviewed.

Scope

The content focuses on adult social care in England, where CQC regulates. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own regulators and some different law; the underlying principles of good care travel well, but check the national guidance where you work.

See the full disclaimer and the list of official sources.