HSSC Inspector - London

Care Quality Commission; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 42,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual leave 27–32.5 days

Training and development opportunities

Wellbeing initiatives

NHS pension scheme

Blue Light card discounts

Job summary

The Care Quality Commission is seeking a Hospitals, Secondary and Specialist Care Inspector in Operations to lead inspections of NHS or independent hospital services and drive safety improvements across London and nationwide. The role focuses on using evidence and data to identify risks, review concerns, and coordinate action with partners to safeguard patient care.

Based in Greater London with travel across the region, you will contribute to high-quality oversight and continuous improvement in

Qualifications

• Relevant professional experience within healthcare settings, including leadership and governance.
• Experience using data, feedback and evidence to assess risk and drive improvements.
• Experience leading quality improvement and working with partners to improve services.

Responsibilities

• Lead inspections and on-site/off-site reviews to assess the quality and safety of services.
• Identify risks, review concerns, and determine actions to protect people using services.
• Collaborate with providers and partners to drive safety and quality improvements across services.

Skills

Leadership

Governance

Quality improvement

Oversight

Job description

Grade B - £42,044 (National Framework) or £47,900 (London Framework - if you are London office based or homebased and live within the boundary of the M25). There is also an additional homeworking allowance of £600 per annum for those working from home.

Contracted Hours: Full time 37 hours per week Contract Type: Permanent

Location: We’re currently accepting applications from candidates based in the Greater London area of England. If you live outside of the Greater London area we're unable to progress your application on this occasion.

Closing date: Tuesday 22 September 2026 at 11:59pm

Internal applicants must obtain written confirmation from their line manager, granting permission to be released from their current role, before applying for this opportunity.

Make a difference

Every role at CQC contributes to our mission. If you’re looking for a new role in Operations that gives a true sense of meaning and purpose, then you’ve found it! As a Hospitals, Secondary and Specialist Care Inspector, you’ll help make sure people receive safe, high-quality care when they need it most.

Picture this

You’re out visiting a hospital service, speaking with staff and patients, and reviewing evidence to understand what’s working well and where care can improve. Your work helps shape real change across services in London.

• As a Hospitals, Secondary and Specialist Care Inspector in Operations, you will lead inspections of NHS or independent hospital services, identifying risks and helping teams take action to improve patient safety.

• As a Hospitals, Secondary and Specialist Care Inspector in Operations, you will review concerns raised by patients, families or staff, working with partners to decide what action is needed to protect people using services.

• As a Hospitals, Secondary and Specialist Care Inspector in Operations, you will work closely with system partners, commissioners, and stakeholders to share intelligence and coordinate action that drives improvement in safety and quality across services.

The role

You’ll play an important part in delivering our mission. In this role, you’ll:

• Lead inspections and assessments: Plan and carry out on-site inspections and off-site reviews, gathering evidence to assess the quality and safety of services.

• Identify and respond to risk: Review information from a range of sources, spot emerging concerns, and take action where standards are not met.

• Work with partners and share insights: Collaborate with colleagues, providers, and partners to build a clear picture of care quality and support improvement across services.

Show us

We will be looking for specific skills, knowledge and experience in your application form:

• Relevant professional experience within healthcare settings (such as NHS or independent hospital services), including leadership, management, clinical, governance, quality improvement or oversight responsibilities, with clear examples of assessing quality, safety, or improving services.

• Experience using data, feedback and evidence from different sources to assess risk, make informed decisions, identify concerns, prioritise actions and recommend improvements, taking responsibility for outcomes.

• Experience leading or contributing to quality improvement and working collaboratively with teams, professionals, people who use services and partner organisations, with experience handling sensitive situations and producing clear, evidence-based reports and recommendations.

We are currently accepting applications from candidates who can work and travel across Greater London.

Join us and help CQC shape the future of health and care.

Compliance

To progress your application, you’ll need to provide evidence of your right to work in the UK. Without valid right to work you won’t be eligible for the role. We are unable to offer sponsorship for this role. Some roles may also be subject to a satisfactory DBS check.

You can read the full details of the role in our Job Description

If you’d like an informal chat about the role contact: Mark Heath, Operations Manager - [e-mail].

For general enquiries, please email [e-mail].

The Benefits We offer a wide range of benefits, including:

• Annual leave starting at 27 days per year, rising to 32.5 days with service, plus bank holidays (usually 8 days per year).
• Training and development opportunities.
• Wellbeing initiatives, such as gym discounts and meditation.
• NHS pension scheme, with around 23.7% employer contribution.
• Discount schemes (including eligibility for a Blue Light card, at a cost of £4.99 and valid for 2 years), reward vouchers, car leasing and more!

Please see our benefits page for the full list.

Equity for all We know job descriptions can feel intimidating. Research shows they can cause some people to doubt whether they’re a good fit. This happens more often to people from underrepresented groups (e.g. ethnic minority backgrounds). If this role interests you, we encourage you to apply. Your unique perspective, skills, and experience could be exactly what we need.

We want every candidate to feel supported and able to do their best. If you need adjustments to our process,we’ll work with you to remove any barriers. Visit our accessibility page for more on this. If you’d like to chat, please contact [e-mail] note, if you have previously informed us of adjustments you need for interview or within your role these are not carried over and must be discussed for each individual application you make.

We promote a workplace wherefairness, respect and inclusion are a priority. Diverse teams make our work better, help us deliver our mission and make our culture stronger. See our ED&I page for more about this. We welcome applications fromeveryone,and colleagues can find support and community among our many employee networks. This includes people of any:

• Age
• Sex
• Gender identity or expression
• Sexual orientation
• Religion or belief
• Ethnicity
• Disability

Values and vision We are guided by ourcore values, which shape our work and our culture. Excellence– being a high-performing organisation. Caring– treating everyone with dignity and respect. Integrity– doing the right thing. Teamwork– learning from each other to be the best we can. We are a disability confident employer and a carer confident employer.

A Note on AI AI tools can be great for research and refining ideas, but we want to learn about you. If you use AI or Chatbots to help you with your application, keep these points in mind:

• AI can support research, structuring and refining your writing, but your application must reflect your real skills and experience.
• Spell-checking and condensing word counts are great ways to use AI effectively.
• Do not copy and paste AI generated answers. These will not help you stand out; remember we want to hear about your skills and experience.
• Providing false and insincere examples goes against our core values of honesty and integrity and may lead to your application being withdrawn or termination of your employment.