Nominated Individual vs Registered Manager

If your care home is run by a company rather than an individual, CQC requires you to name a nominated individual — and a surprising number of small providers either do not know they have one, or have one named who no longer works there. It is a quiet role until something goes wrong, at which point it matters a great deal, because the nominated individual is one of the people CQC holds accountable for the service.

This guide explains what the nominated individual is, how the role differs from the registered manager, who can hold it, and the duty that bites when it changes.

What a nominated individual is

A nominated individual is the person an organisation names to CQC as responsible for supervising the management of the regulated activity carried on by that organisation. The role exists only where the provider is a body other than a partnership — typically a limited company or other corporate body — rather than a single individual or a partnership. A sole-trader provider has no nominated individual, because the individual is the provider.

The role is defined in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, regulation 6, which describes the nominated individual as a person "employed as a director, manager or secretary" of the organisation and "responsible for supervising the management of the carrying on of the regulated activity". In short: it is the senior person CQC looks to as the organisation's accountable point of contact for how the service is run.

How it differs from the registered manager

This is the distinction that trips people up. The two roles sit at different levels:

	Registered manager	Nominated individual
What it covers	Day-to-day management at a specific location	Supervising the management of the activity on the provider's behalf
Who needs one	Most regulated services	Only where the provider is a body other than a partnership (e.g. a limited company)
Level	Operational	Oversight / accountability
Relationship	Runs the home	Holds the organisation's responsibility for how the home is run

The registered manager runs the home. The nominated individual is the organisation's senior accountable person above that. In a small company that owns one home, the same person can sometimes hold both roles, or the owner may be the nominated individual while a manager they employ is the registered manager. The roles remain legally distinct even when they overlap in practice. For the manager side of this relationship, see our guide to registered manager responsibilities.

Who can be a nominated individual

The nominated individual must be a director, manager, or secretary of the organisation — someone with genuine seniority and authority within the provider, not a junior nominee. They are also subject to the fit-and-proper-person expectations that apply to the accountable people behind a registered service, so character, competence, and suitability all matter.

The practical test is whether the person genuinely has the authority and standing to supervise how the regulated activity is managed. Naming someone who lacks that authority — a name on a form who does not actually oversee the service — undermines the purpose of the role and can become a governance concern.

The duty when it changes

Here is the part that catches small providers out. A change of nominated individual is notifiable to CQC. Regulation 15 of the Registration Regulations requires the registered person to notify CQC, in writing and as soon as it is reasonably practicable, of a range of changes — and the regulation expressly lists "a change of nominated individual" among them.

So when the named nominated individual leaves the organisation, changes role, or is replaced, you have a duty to tell CQC promptly and in writing. A provider whose named nominated individual left two years ago and was never updated has an out-of-date registration and an unmet notification duty — exactly the kind of inconsistency an inspector notices when registration records do not match reality. For the wider set of reporting duties, see our CQC notifications guide.

Keeping the role current

Treat the nominated individual the same way you treat your statement of purpose — as registration detail that must stay accurate:

1. Know who your nominated individual currently is. If you are not certain, check your CQC registration record.
2. Review it on any change — when the named person leaves, changes role, or the organisation restructures.
3. Notify CQC in writing, promptly, of any change, and log the date you did so.
4. Make sure the named person actually performs the oversight role — not just on paper.

A nominated individual who is correctly named, genuinely senior, and kept up to date is a small but real piece of Well-Led evidence: it shows the organisation behind the home is properly constituted and accountable.

Where this sits in your compliance picture

The nominated individual, the registered manager, and the provider are the three accountable layers behind every organisation-run care home. Keeping all three correctly registered, current, and consistent with each other is part of the governance CQC expects.

To check how your service measures up against what CQC looks for in a well-led, well-governed home, the free CQC Readiness Self-Assessment takes about 15 minutes and gives you a prioritised list of where to focus.

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This is general guidance based on the published Care Quality Commission (Registration) Regulations 2009 and CQC guidance current at the date above. Requirements can change — always check the current guidance on cqc.org.uk and the regulations on legislation.gov.uk for your specific situation. Not legal advice.

Sources

• Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, regulation 6 — nominated individual
• Care Quality Commission (Registration) Regulations 2009, regulation 15 — notice of changes
• CQC — registration guidance for providers