Refresher Training in Health and Social Care: When to Update Skills and What Inspectors Look For
Refresher training helps care workers maintain the knowledge and practical skills needed to provide safe, effective and person-centred support. For care providers and registered managers, it is also an important part of showing how staff are prepared, assessed and supported in their roles.
There is no single refresher timetable that applies to every care worker and every subject. Training needs depend on the role, the people being supported, the care setting and the risks involved. Providers need a clear, evidence-based approach to deciding when learning should be refreshed and how competence will be checked.
What does CQC expect?
For services regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in England, Regulation 18 requires providers to give staff the training, development, supervision and support needed to carry out their duties. Training needs must be identified when staff start and reviewed at appropriate intervals. Staff should be supervised until they demonstrate the required competence, and their competence should be maintained through ongoing or periodic supervision.
CQC does not set one universal expiry date for every mandatory training subject. Providers define the mandatory training needed for their roles and services, then decide appropriate refresher arrangements. Those decisions should reflect current guidance, individual responsibilities and the needs of the people receiving care.
Regulation 13 also expects relevant safeguarding training at induction and at appropriate intervals. It should help staff recognise abuse, understand their responsibilities and know how to report concerns.
A certificate can evidence attendance or completion. It does not, by itself, show that a worker can apply learning safely in practice.
When should a care worker refresh their skills?
A scheduled review date is one useful prompt. It should not be the only one. Managers should also consider refresher training or reassessment when:
- A worker’s training or competency review is due under the provider’s policy.
- The worker takes on new duties, uses new equipment or supports someone with different needs.
- Guidance, legislation, local safeguarding arrangements or workplace procedures change.
- An incident, near miss, complaint or audit identifies a learning need.
- Supervision or observation identifies a gap in knowledge or practice.
- A worker has not used a skill for some time, or confidence in their competence has reduced.
- A change in the care environment introduces a new risk.
The response may be a full refresher course, practical reassessment, targeted coaching or a combination. The aim is to match the learning to the gap and confirm that the worker can perform the task safely.
Common refresher areas for care workers
Training should reflect the worker’s role and the service’s needs. The following are common areas for review across health and social care. They are not automatically required at the same level or at the same interval for every role.
Safeguarding adults
Refresher learning should reinforce how to recognise possible abuse or neglect, respond to a disclosure, record concerns and report them through the correct internal and local procedures. It should also cover the worker’s responsibilities and how to raise a concern without delay.
Safeguarding adults training online can support flexible access to learning. Providers should ensure it reflects their current procedures and is supported by discussion, supervision or other learning that helps staff apply it in their work.
Medication
Medication responsibilities vary. Staff should receive training that matches the tasks they are expected to carry out, followed by a formal competency assessment before they manage or administer medicines. Competence should be reviewed and recorded, especially when processes change or an error or incident highlights a learning need.
CQC’s guidance on training and competence in medicines notes that NICE guidance recommends an annual review of knowledge, skills and competence for staff supporting people with medicines. This is a recommendation for a review, not a blanket rule that every medicines course expires annually.
Moving and handling
Staff need role-specific knowledge of risk assessment, safe techniques and relevant equipment. Practical assessment is important because safe practice depends on applying learning to the individual, their support plan and the environment.
Refresher training or reassessment may be needed when a person’s mobility or needs change, new equipment is introduced, an incident occurs or a worker’s practice gives cause for concern.
Fire safety
Staff should understand the fire procedures for their setting and their responsibilities in an emergency. Training should be relevant to the premises and the worker’s role. Changes to the building, equipment, procedures or fire risk assessment may mean the team needs an update or further practice.
Infection prevention and control
Refresher learning should help staff follow current workplace procedures for hand hygiene, personal protective equipment, cleaning, waste and infection risks. Updates may be needed when guidance or local procedures change, during an outbreak or when observation identifies a gap in practice.
Basic life support
The level of basic life support training should reflect the service, role and risks. Practical skills need regular attention so staff can respond appropriately. The Skills for Care statutory and mandatory training guide gives adult social care employers guidance on training and refresher considerations, including formal basic life support training when identified or at least annually. Providers should consult the guide and their relevant requirements when setting their own arrangements.
What might inspectors look for?
CQC guidance says providers should identify and review staff training needs, support staff to undertake necessary learning, supervise staff until they demonstrate competence where appropriate, and monitor completion. A practical training system should help managers show how those responsibilities are being met.
Inspectors may consider whether a provider can demonstrate:
- A role-based training plan that reflects the service and the people it supports.
- An induction process and a method for identifying individual learning needs.
- Clear records of training, practical assessments and competency reviews.
- Appropriate supervision and follow-up when training is overdue or competence is uncertain.
- Evidence that incidents, changes in practice and audit findings inform future learning.
- Staff understanding of how to apply procedures and raise concerns.
The CQC’s Regulation 18 guidance and staff training plan information explain the importance of training that reflects service needs and job roles. For safeguarding, see Regulation 13 guidance.
Build a refresher plan that supports safe practice
A useful training matrix records what each role requires, when learning was completed, when it is due for review and how competence will be checked. Managers can use supervision, observation, reflective discussion and assessments to identify whether learning has transferred into practice.
The Skills for Care guide offers refresher recommendations for some topics, while also advising employers to consider changes in risk, care needs, environment, activities, guidance and worker competence. Use these recommendations alongside relevant law, local requirements and organisational policy. Avoid treating a single timetable as suitable for every role and setting.
Refresher training with Achievers Training College
Achievers Training College (ATC), a Highfield-approved training provider and centre 14591, delivers refresher, mandatory, compliance and competency training for health and social care teams. Our approach combines structured learning with practical skills development and assessment, designed to support confident, competent practice.
We work with care providers to identify suitable training and delivery options, including online live learning, e-learning, classroom sessions, workplace assessment and blended learning. Where practical competence matters, learning can be supported by assessment rather than attendance alone.
Building knowledge. Refreshing skills. Supporting safe care.
To discuss refresher training for your team, visit Achievers Training College or contact us at info@achieverstrainingcollege.co.uk or 0330 520 0554.