This is a ten-digit number, usually starting with several zeroes, which was allocated when registration was first applied for, or when the former National Care Standards Commission (NCSC) centralised the registration process in 2002.
This number can be found on the establishment’s registration certificate and may either appear as 0000012345 or just 12345. You should enter all the zeroes.
Do not enter the Certificate Number, which changes with each new certificate.
The number you enter will be checked against the latest version of CQC’s Registration Database. If there are discrepancies, you will be asked to contact the NMDS-SC Helpdesk.
The date of registration is the date on which the CQC registration was confirmed. It should be on or since 1 April 2002, which is the date when registration was transferred from local authorities to the former National Care Standards Commission (NCSC), the precursor to the CQC.
Any earlier registration dates relate to registration with a local authority. In such cases the date 1 April 2002 should be entered.
Multiple CQC registrations
If the business or organisation operating at the establishment is registered with the CQC to provide more than one service, and therefore has more than one CQC registration number, you need to complete the NMDS-SC separately for each provision (i.e. each registered service).
Shared staff should be included in the NMDS-SC for each provision, and their hours allocated on the basis of ‘best estimate’ of time spent on each, unless time sheets are kept. Which non-registered service(s) to include with which registered one should be based on best fit with the operation as a whole. If you have queries on this, please contact the NMDS-SC Helpdesk.
New Care Quality Commission registration process and NMDS-SC registration
Employers who register with NMDS-SC are asked to enter their CQC registration number. Those who are registered with CQC under the old system and have a registration number starting with 4, 5 or 6 zeros should enter their old number. Changes will be made to NMDS-SC to accept new numbers as from 1st October 2010. Service providers who are only registered with CQC under the new system should leave the CQC registration data field in NMDS-SC blank until the 1st October.
From 1st October 2010 all service providers who have an NMDS-SC account will be asked to update their CQC number in NMDS-SC. Skills for Care use the CQC number to ensure that we have valid and accurate data in the system which is important for the workforce reports that we provide to you from NMDS-SC. From 1st October we will be asking you to enter into NMDS-SC both the CQC provider registration number and the CQC individual service location identifier.