Data
Home care in England: the numbers
What the Care Quality Commission register says about all 14,263 active home care agencies in England, worked out from the register as it stood on 8 November 2026.
How England's home care agencies are rated
What CQC ratings mean →- Outstanding 436
- Good 7486
- Requires improvement 1145
- Inadequate 59
- Not yet rated 5137
Agencies with no rating, by how long they could have been inspected
5,137 agencies have no rating under their current registration. Time is counted from registration, or from when a dormant agency started providing care again.
| Not providing care at the moment (dormant) | 737 |
|---|---|
| Providing care for under a year | 1,058 |
| 1 to 2 years | 1,403 |
| 2 to 5 years | 1,884 |
| More than 5 years | 55 |
How old current ratings are
9,126 rated agencies. The typical (median) rating is 4.2 years old.
| Under 2 years | 2,397 |
|---|---|
| 2 to 3 years | 481 |
| 3 to 5 years | 2,672 |
| More than 5 years | 3,576 |
720 agencies were rated Requires improvement or Inadequate more than two years ago and have not been re-rated since.
By region
| Region | Agencies | Good or Outstanding | Requires improvement or Inadequate | No rating yet | Unrated, providing care 2+ years | Ratings over 5 years old | Median rating age (years) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East | 1,815 | 52.3% | 9% | 38.6% | 296 | 45.7% | 4.7 |
| East Midlands | 1,409 | 50% | 9.9% | 40.1% | 249 | 37.3% | 4.2 |
| London | 2,439 | 55.1% | 7.5% | 37.4% | 298 | 25.8% | 3.8 |
| North East | 424 | 73.6% | 5.2% | 21.2% | 13 | 29.3% | 3.6 |
| North West | 1,566 | 58.6% | 5.8% | 35.6% | 207 | 47.1% | 4.6 |
| South East | 2,490 | 51.7% | 8.8% | 39.5% | 368 | 42.3% | 4.3 |
| South West | 1,299 | 64.4% | 6.9% | 28.6% | 126 | 35.4% | 3.9 |
| Wales | 2 | 100% | 0% | 0% | 0 | 50% | 4.8 |
| West Midlands | 1,591 | 48% | 12.1% | 39.8% | 273 | 50.6% | 5.1 |
| Yorkshire & Humberside | 1,224 | 65.4% | 8.3% | 26.3% | 109 | 36.8% | 3.9 |
By council area
Council areas with at least 10 agencies, by where each agency is based. Click a column heading to sort.
| Council area | Agencies | Good or Outstanding | Requires improvement or Inadequate | No rating yet | Unrated, providing care 2+ years | Ratings over 5 years old | Median rating age (years) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barking and Dagenham | 159 | 45.3% | 6.3% | 48.4% | 21 | 22% | 3.5 |
| Barnet | 97 | 67% | 2.1% | 30.9% | 6 | 40.3% | 4.2 |
| Barnsley | 56 | 85.7% | 3.6% | 10.7% | 2 | 26% | 3.3 |
| Bath and North East Somerset | 28 | 50% | 17.9% | 32.1% | 2 | 31.6% | 4.3 |
| Bedford | 81 | 43.2% | 9.9% | 46.9% | 15 | 27.9% | 3.4 |
| Bexley | 71 | 29.6% | 21.1% | 49.3% | 12 | 25% | 4.2 |
| Birmingham | 317 | 42% | 15.8% | 42.3% | 55 | 53% | 5.4 |
| Blackburn with Darwen | 37 | 51.4% | 5.4% | 43.2% | 5 | 47.6% | 3.8 |
| Blackpool | 26 | 61.5% | 3.8% | 34.6% | 4 | 47.1% | 4.7 |
| Bolton | 63 | 63.5% | 3.2% | 33.3% | 10 | 35.7% | 4.4 |
| Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole | 123 | 71.5% | 2.4% | 26% | 10 | 17.6% | 2.5 |
| Bracknell Forest | 29 | 44.8% | 17.2% | 37.9% | 4 | 50% | 5 |
| Bradford | 111 | 60.4% | 9.9% | 29.7% | 10 | 46.2% | 4.2 |
| Brent | 93 | 61.3% | 10.8% | 28% | 13 | 32.8% | 3.9 |
| Brighton and Hove | 54 | 61.1% | 9.3% | 29.6% | 9 | 47.4% | 4.8 |
| Bristol, City of | 93 | 59.1% | 2.2% | 38.7% | 11 | 29.8% | 3.7 |
| Bromley | 87 | 57.5% | 8% | 34.5% | 9 | 43.9% | 4.6 |
| Buckinghamshire | 135 | 41.5% | 10.4% | 48.1% | 37 | 45.7% | 4.6 |
| Bury | 52 | 61.5% | 3.8% | 34.6% | 4 | 38.2% | 4.3 |
| Calderdale | 49 | 71.4% | 8.2% | 20.4% | 4 | 43.6% | 4.7 |
| Cambridgeshire | 137 | 56.9% | 7.3% | 35.8% | 25 | 59.1% | 6 |
| Camden | 47 | 61.7% | 6.4% | 31.9% | 5 | 40.6% | 3.8 |
| Central Bedfordshire | 57 | 47.4% | 8.8% | 43.9% | 13 | 28.1% | 3.2 |
| Cheshire East | 94 | 58.5% | 8.5% | 33% | 15 | 60.3% | 6.9 |
| Cheshire West and Chester | 74 | 70.3% | 8.1% | 21.6% | 7 | 41.4% | 4.4 |
| City of London | 16 | 18.8% | 6.3% | 75% | 5 | 50% | 4.1 |
| Cornwall | 117 | 64.1% | 6.8% | 29.1% | 16 | 53% | 5.3 |
| County Durham | 68 | 63.2% | 7.4% | 29.4% | 4 | 20.8% | 3.4 |
| Coventry | 142 | 39.4% | 9.9% | 50.7% | 25 | 52.9% | 5.3 |
| Croydon | 153 | 52.9% | 10.5% | 36.6% | 16 | 22.7% | 4 |
| Cumberland | 62 | 48.4% | 6.5% | 45.2% | 5 | 20.6% | 3.4 |
| Darlington | 18 | 88.9% | 5.6% | 5.6% | 0 | 29.4% | 3.4 |
| Derby | 117 | 52.1% | 5.1% | 42.7% | 21 | 32.8% | 4.1 |
| Derbyshire | 141 | 69.5% | 4.3% | 26.2% | 20 | 42.3% | 4.3 |
| Devon | 149 | 70.5% | 6% | 23.5% | 20 | 50% | 5 |
| Doncaster | 69 | 71% | 2.9% | 26.1% | 5 | 23.5% | 2.8 |
| Dorset | 84 | 76.2% | 1.2% | 22.6% | 5 | 24.6% | 3.3 |
| Dudley | 65 | 44.6% | 15.4% | 40% | 8 | 51.3% | 5.2 |
| Ealing | 111 | 60.4% | 8.1% | 31.5% | 11 | 22.4% | 3.4 |
| East Riding of Yorkshire | 58 | 62.1% | 10.3% | 27.6% | 5 | 47.6% | 4.7 |
| East Sussex | 109 | 71.6% | 7.3% | 21.1% | 3 | 41.9% | 4.2 |
| Enfield | 116 | 55.2% | 7.8% | 37.1% | 17 | 37% | 4.3 |
| Essex | 470 | 58.7% | 6.6% | 34.7% | 50 | 40.1% | 4.3 |
| Gateshead | 44 | 79.5% | 2.3% | 18.2% | 0 | 27.8% | 3.1 |
| Gloucestershire | 177 | 57.1% | 11.9% | 31.1% | 21 | 41.8% | 4.4 |
| Greenwich | 108 | 30.6% | 21.3% | 48.1% | 27 | 32.1% | 3.9 |
| Hackney | 40 | 62.5% | 7.5% | 30% | 8 | 35.7% | 4.3 |
| Halton | 14 | 57.1% | 14.3% | 28.6% | 1 | 20% | 1.9 |
| Hammersmith and Fulham | 40 | 70% | 0% | 30% | 3 | 14.3% | 2.2 |
| Hampshire | 356 | 56.2% | 6.5% | 37.4% | 42 | 46.6% | 4.6 |
| Haringey | 66 | 53% | 7.6% | 39.4% | 5 | 25% | 3.8 |
| Harrow | 91 | 61.5% | 5.5% | 33% | 13 | 31.1% | 4 |
| Hartlepool | 11 | 90.9% | 0% | 9.1% | 0 | 40% | 3.3 |
| Havering | 119 | 55.5% | 4.2% | 40.3% | 17 | 25.4% | 3.9 |
| Herefordshire, County of | 49 | 67.3% | 0% | 32.7% | 7 | 60.6% | 6 |
| Hertfordshire | 331 | 49.5% | 10.3% | 40.2% | 73 | 49.5% | 5 |
| Hillingdon | 85 | 68.2% | 1.2% | 30.6% | 5 | 6.8% | 2 |
| Hounslow | 75 | 65.3% | 4% | 30.7% | 2 | 5.8% | 2.1 |
| Isle of Wight | 37 | 73% | 10.8% | 16.2% | 2 | 32.3% | 3.5 |
| Islington | 48 | 58.3% | 4.2% | 37.5% | 7 | 33.3% | 3.9 |
| Kensington and Chelsea | 14 | 78.6% | 7.1% | 14.3% | 0 | 8.3% | 1.5 |
| Kent | 403 | 43.9% | 10.4% | 45.7% | 68 | 44.7% | 4.5 |
| Kingston upon Hull, City of | 56 | 60.7% | 5.4% | 33.9% | 7 | 51.4% | 5.4 |
| Kingston upon Thames | 46 | 87% | 2.2% | 10.9% | 2 | 14.6% | 3.1 |
| Kirklees | 80 | 60% | 15% | 25% | 2 | 31.7% | 3.5 |
| Knowsley | 23 | 52.2% | 13% | 34.8% | 3 | 40% | 4.3 |
| Lambeth | 60 | 58.3% | 1.7% | 40% | 10 | 27.8% | 4 |
| Lancashire | 275 | 70.2% | 1.8% | 28% | 29 | 51.5% | 5.3 |
| Leeds | 239 | 49.4% | 12.1% | 38.5% | 42 | 23.8% | 2.9 |
| Leicester | 180 | 43.9% | 12.2% | 43.9% | 23 | 36.6% | 3.7 |
| Leicestershire | 172 | 54.1% | 14.5% | 31.4% | 14 | 40.7% | 4.2 |
| Lewisham | 84 | 31% | 23.8% | 45.2% | 14 | 28.3% | 3.9 |
| Lincolnshire | 124 | 57.3% | 7.3% | 35.5% | 26 | 48.8% | 4.8 |
| Liverpool | 106 | 53.8% | 3.8% | 42.5% | 18 | 60.7% | 5.9 |
| Luton | 69 | 30.4% | 24.6% | 44.9% | 16 | 44.7% | 4.6 |
| Manchester | 124 | 37.9% | 4.8% | 57.3% | 18 | 37.7% | 4 |
| Medway | 107 | 29% | 16.8% | 54.2% | 25 | 38.8% | 4.2 |
| Merton | 62 | 75.8% | 0% | 24.2% | 3 | 8.5% | 3.2 |
| Middlesbrough | 23 | 65.2% | 4.3% | 30.4% | 1 | 31.3% | 3.8 |
| Milton Keynes | 174 | 41.4% | 5.7% | 52.9% | 34 | 36.6% | 4.2 |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | 48 | 81.3% | 4.2% | 14.6% | 2 | 39% | 4.4 |
| Newham | 91 | 51.6% | 5.5% | 42.9% | 14 | 32.7% | 3.8 |
| Norfolk | 180 | 51.7% | 15.6% | 32.8% | 25 | 48.8% | 4.6 |
| North East Lincolnshire | 26 | 73.1% | 3.8% | 23.1% | 2 | 45% | 3.9 |
| North Lincolnshire | 17 | 76.5% | 5.9% | 17.6% | 1 | 64.3% | 7.6 |
| North Northamptonshire | 147 | 43.5% | 9.5% | 46.9% | 30 | 16.7% | 3.7 |
| North Somerset | 44 | 59.1% | 2.3% | 38.6% | 2 | 29.6% | 3.6 |
| North Tyneside | 44 | 59.1% | 11.4% | 29.5% | 2 | 22.6% | 2 |
| North Yorkshire | 152 | 78.9% | 6.6% | 14.5% | 7 | 50.8% | 5.1 |
| Northumberland | 42 | 85.7% | 7.1% | 7.1% | 0 | 15.4% | 3.3 |
| Nottingham | 147 | 38.1% | 6.1% | 55.8% | 43 | 44.6% | 4.3 |
| Nottinghamshire | 198 | 55.6% | 6.6% | 37.9% | 35 | 43.1% | 4.5 |
| Oldham | 64 | 50% | 4.7% | 45.3% | 11 | 45.7% | 4.4 |
| Oxfordshire | 172 | 57.6% | 9.3% | 33.1% | 32 | 53% | 5.2 |
| Peterborough | 127 | 39.4% | 2.4% | 58.3% | 35 | 62.3% | 6.6 |
| Plymouth | 52 | 53.8% | 9.6% | 36.5% | 9 | 30.3% | 4 |
| Portsmouth | 59 | 40.7% | 13.6% | 45.8% | 7 | 21.9% | 3.4 |
| Reading | 60 | 40% | 18.3% | 41.7% | 9 | 31.4% | 4.1 |
| Redbridge | 128 | 50% | 3.9% | 46.1% | 18 | 17.4% | 3.5 |
| Redcar and Cleveland | 19 | 68.4% | 5.3% | 26.3% | 1 | 14.3% | 3.5 |
| Richmond upon Thames | 27 | 74.1% | 0% | 25.9% | 0 | 20% | 4 |
| Rochdale | 56 | 50% | 8.9% | 41.1% | 5 | 42.4% | 4.3 |
| Rotherham | 52 | 67.3% | 7.7% | 25% | 3 | 20.5% | 3.3 |
| Rutland | 15 | 66.7% | 13.3% | 20% | 0 | 41.7% | 4.3 |
| Salford | 55 | 52.7% | 3.6% | 43.6% | 9 | 32.3% | 4.4 |
| Sandwell | 90 | 43.3% | 20% | 36.7% | 12 | 52.6% | 5.3 |
| Sefton | 48 | 68.8% | 8.3% | 22.9% | 7 | 45.9% | 4.7 |
| Sheffield | 136 | 73.5% | 4.4% | 22.1% | 8 | 24.5% | 3.4 |
| Shropshire | 85 | 67.1% | 9.4% | 23.5% | 9 | 58.5% | 6.7 |
| Slough | 70 | 25.7% | 10% | 64.3% | 19 | 48% | 4.6 |
| Solihull | 56 | 62.5% | 8.9% | 28.6% | 7 | 50% | 5 |
| Somerset | 120 | 65.8% | 6.7% | 27.5% | 7 | 31% | 4 |
| South Gloucestershire | 81 | 61.7% | 6.2% | 32.1% | 9 | 47.3% | 4.6 |
| South Tyneside | 17 | 82.4% | 5.9% | 11.8% | 0 | 46.7% | 4.8 |
| Southampton | 99 | 34.3% | 5.1% | 60.6% | 10 | 33.3% | 4 |
| Southend-on-Sea | 75 | 48% | 10.7% | 41.3% | 8 | 29.5% | 3.8 |
| Southwark | 56 | 28.6% | 16.1% | 55.4% | 11 | 36% | 4.4 |
| St. Helens | 39 | 69.2% | 7.7% | 23.1% | 5 | 63.3% | 7 |
| Staffordshire | 168 | 44.6% | 12.5% | 42.9% | 44 | 54.2% | 6.6 |
| Stockport | 72 | 55.6% | 12.5% | 31.9% | 10 | 55.1% | 5.2 |
| Stockton-on-Tees | 46 | 65.2% | 2.2% | 32.6% | 1 | 35.5% | 3.3 |
| Stoke-on-Trent | 80 | 40% | 12.5% | 47.5% | 24 | 64.3% | 7 |
| Suffolk | 206 | 62.6% | 7.8% | 29.6% | 26 | 53.8% | 5.5 |
| Sunderland | 44 | 79.5% | 2.3% | 18.2% | 2 | 41.7% | 4.2 |
| Surrey | 298 | 67.4% | 7.7% | 24.8% | 28 | 30.4% | 3.7 |
| Sutton | 55 | 80% | 5.5% | 14.5% | 1 | 8.5% | 2.3 |
| Swindon | 55 | 60% | 14.5% | 25.5% | 3 | 22% | 1.3 |
| Tameside | 30 | 46.7% | 10% | 43.3% | 6 | 58.8% | 6.6 |
| Telford and Wrekin | 67 | 46.3% | 7.5% | 46.3% | 14 | 50% | 5.2 |
| Thurrock | 82 | 50% | 4.9% | 45.1% | 10 | 33.3% | 4.1 |
| Torbay | 28 | 75% | 10.7% | 14.3% | 3 | 29.2% | 3.4 |
| Tower Hamlets | 75 | 49.3% | 4% | 46.7% | 13 | 40% | 4.4 |
| Trafford | 63 | 61.9% | 9.5% | 28.6% | 6 | 31.1% | 3.6 |
| Wakefield | 79 | 62% | 8.9% | 29.1% | 7 | 44.6% | 4.2 |
| Walsall | 89 | 44.9% | 9% | 46.1% | 18 | 31.3% | 3.6 |
| Waltham Forest | 54 | 57.4% | 13% | 29.6% | 6 | 39.5% | 3.7 |
| Wandsworth | 39 | 69.2% | 0% | 30.8% | 2 | 14.8% | 3.8 |
| Warrington | 46 | 47.8% | 8.7% | 43.5% | 9 | 42.3% | 4.4 |
| Warwickshire | 138 | 54.3% | 12.3% | 33.3% | 8 | 39.1% | 4.1 |
| West Berkshire | 38 | 60.5% | 0% | 39.5% | 7 | 65.2% | 7.2 |
| West Northamptonshire | 168 | 37.5% | 19.6% | 42.9% | 37 | 26% | 3.9 |
| West Sussex | 211 | 65.4% | 5.2% | 29.4% | 21 | 47.7% | 4.7 |
| Westminster | 26 | 42.3% | 0% | 57.7% | 2 | 9.1% | 1.2 |
| Westmorland and Furness | 48 | 56.3% | 2.1% | 41.7% | 8 | 57.1% | 5.5 |
| Wigan | 45 | 64.4% | 6.7% | 28.9% | 4 | 46.9% | 4.9 |
| Wiltshire | 147 | 66.7% | 7.5% | 25.9% | 8 | 31.2% | 3.6 |
| Windsor and Maidenhead | 30 | 43.3% | 20% | 36.7% | 3 | 36.8% | 3.8 |
| Wirral | 50 | 74% | 6% | 20% | 8 | 60% | 6.5 |
| Wokingham | 47 | 57.4% | 6.4% | 36.2% | 8 | 53.3% | 5.2 |
| Wolverhampton | 132 | 37.9% | 12.9% | 49.2% | 29 | 28.4% | 3.3 |
| Worcestershire | 113 | 69.9% | 8.8% | 21.2% | 13 | 61.8% | 6.7 |
| York | 44 | 65.9% | 9.1% | 25% | 4 | 54.5% | 5.4 |
How these figures are worked out
We count every location on the Care Quality Commission register that is currently registered and provides a domiciliary (home) care service in England. Each agency office counts once, so a provider with several branches counts once per branch. Region and council are the ones the CQC records for the branch's address, not every area it serves.
"No rating yet" means the branch has no current overall rating under its current registration. That covers new agencies awaiting a first inspection, and services that re-registered after a change of owner. Agencies the CQC lists as dormant (registered but not caring for anyone, so they can't be inspected) are counted separately. Ratings from both the CQC's older inspections and its single assessment framework, used since 2024, are included. A rating's age is measured from the date the report that set it was published.
The figures are recalculated every day from the register, which we refresh nightly. The same numbers are available as JSON.
Using these figures
You are welcome to quote or republish them. Please credit "MatchMyHomeCare analysis of CQC data" and link to this page. The underlying data is the CQC's, published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Journalists can email hello@matchmyhomecare.co.uk for a breakdown for their area.