England - key agencies at a glance

This section includes information about the overarching national agencies:

Department of Health
The Department of Health provides health and social care policy, guidance and publications for NHS and social care professionals in England. Its work includes setting national standards, shaping the direction of health and social care services and promoting healthier living.

Care Quality Commission (CQC)
The Care Quality Commission was established by the Health and Social Care Act 2008, and is the independent regulator of all health and social care services in England. The CQC ensures that care provided by hospitals, dentists, ambulances, care homes and services in people’s own homes and elsewhere meets government standards of quality and safety. The website sets out the vision of the Care Quality Commission and provides information and publications about its governance arrangements and review processes.

The RCN Policy Unit has produced a briefing on the Care Quality Commission. See Policy briefing 15/2008 - The Care Quality Commission (CQC) in England (PDF 67.8KB) [See how to access PDF files].

Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is the government agency which is responsible for ensuring that medicines and medical devices work, and are acceptably safe. The MHRA is an executive agency of the Department of Health.

Monitor
Monitor is the independent regulator of NHS foundation trusts and is directly accountable to Parliament. It  determines whether NHS trusts are ready to become NHS foundation trusts and ensures that NHS foundation trusts comply with the conditions they signed up to and that they are well-led and financially robust. The Health and Social Care Act 2012 has extended Monitor’s role as from 2013 to regulate all providers of NHS-funded services in England, with some exceptions. Monitor will now work with other bodies, in particular the NHS Commissioning Board, the Care Quality Commission and NICE “to help ensure that the providers of NHS-funded services, the commissioners of those services and above all the users of those services are able to make sure that the best possible care is delivered.”

National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is the independent organisation responsible for providing national guidance on the promotion of good health and the prevention and treatment of ill health in England and Wales. NICE's responsibilities include:

  • developing evidence-based guidelines, public health guidance and technology appraisals
  • setting standards for high-quality care (quality standards)
  • developing NICE pathways
  • providing recommendations on drugs
  • overseeing the development of indicators for the quality and outcomes framework (QOF)
  • managing NHS Evidence.

NHS Commissioning Board (NHS CB)
The NHS Commissioning Board, plays a key role in the Government’s vision to modernise the health service and secure the best possible outcomes for patients. From April 2013 the NHS CB will directly commission certain services and is responsible for authorising the Clinical Commissioning Groups which will commission most hospital and community services. The Board is also  responsible for improving the quality of NHS services and for improving the health of the population. For an overview of the work of the NHS CB, with a particular focus on nursing input and the RCN’s perspective see RCN Policy briefing 38/12: NHS Commissioning Board (PDF 173.2KB).
On Friday 1 June 2012 the key functions and expertise for patient safety developed by the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) transferred to the NHS Commissioning Board Authority.

NHS Connecting for Health
NHS Connecting for Health (NHS CFH) is part of the Department of Health Informatics Directorate. Its role is to maintain and develop the NHS national IT infrastructure.

Public Health England
Public Health England has been established to protect and improve the nation’s health and wellbeing, and to reduce inequalities. It will take up its full powers on 1 April 2013.

Key national agencies for all the UK countries found in the themed areas of the website :

Please also visit the different themes which appear in the left hand menu and are highlighted on the clinical governance resource homepage for a wider range of resources specific to that theme. For example, patient focus.