This document is designed to summarise and centralise the information freely available on the CQC’s website informing on the new Single Assessment Framework. There are some additional elements that we have provided to aid in your understanding of this, such as suggested evidence and a KLOE mapping exercise.

The key evidence categories have been listed by sector groups. The CQC will prioritise collecting evidence in these categories as a part of their assessment. However, please be aware that the lists are a guide and not a checklist. Upon new registration or at the first assessment under the new approach, evidence will be collected in all the key evidence categories for a particular Quality Statement. Other categories may be looked at if evidence suggests this is needed.

The Mental Health Services category is applicable to:

• Acute wards for adults of working age and psychiatric intensive care units
• Child and adolescent mental health wards
• Community mental health services for people with a learning disability or autism
• Community-based mental health services for adults of working age
• Community-based mental health services for older people
• Community-based substance misuse services
• Forensic inpatient or secure wards
• Gender identity services
• High secure hospitals
• Hospital inpatient-based substance misuse services
• Liaison psychiatry services
• Long stay or rehabilitation mental health wards for working age adults
• Mental health crisis services and health-based places of safety
• Perinatal services
• Personality disorder services
• Residential substance misuse services
• Services for people with acquired brain injury
• Specialist community mental health services for children and young people
• Specialist eating disorder services
• Substance misuse services
• Wards for older people with mental health problems
• Wards for people with learning disabilities or autism