CQC registration at sporting events: What Sport Rehabilitators need to know.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) recently published updated guidance on providing healthcare and treatment at sporting and cultural events in England. Changes to the regulations mean that some providers delivering Treatment of disease, disorder or injury (TDDI) at events will need to register with CQC.
BASRaT responded to CQC’s consultation and sought clarification about what the published guidance means for Registered Sport Rehabilitators. As we have always advised, Registered Sport Rehabilitators are not required to register with CQC for TDDI. We have confirmed with CQC that this remains the case when providing treatment at sporting events following the recently published changes.
What does this mean for me?
If you provide a standalone service solely in your capacity as a BASRaT Registered Sport Rehabilitator, you do not need to register with CQC for TDDI simply because you treat people at a sporting event. The change to the rules for event healthcare does not alter that position.
The arrangements around you may still matter. Treatment can fall within scope of TDDI where it is provided or supervised by a listed healthcare professional, such as a doctor, nurse or paramedic, or delivered by a multidisciplinary team that includes one. In those circumstances, the person or organisation responsible for carrying on the regulated activity must determine whether it needs to register. Depending on how the service is organised, that could be an event healthcare provider, club, employer or an independent practitioner.
Working at the same event as a listed professional does not, by itself, mean that every practitioner or separate provider must register. CQC’s guidance distinguishes between independent providers who sometimes work together and a single provider delivering treatment through a multidisciplinary team.
What should registrants check?
If you work as part of an event medical team, establish who provides and directs the healthcare service, whether listed professionals are delivering or supervising treatment, and who is responsible for any CQC registration. This is particularly relevant if you work under a listed professional’s clinical supervision or the same provider employs the whole team.
CQC also distinguishes first aid from treatment that meets the criteria for TDDI. A service providing first aid alone does not need TDDI registration, but calling on a listed professional to give clinical advice or treatment may change the position. CQC sets out further, circumstance-specific exceptions in its guidance, including an exception for certain treatment arranged for professional sportspeople; registrants should not assume that an exception covers everyone attending an event.
Providers who determine that they need to register can now apply during CQC’s registration period. CQC’s monitoring and enforcement under the new event requirements will begin on 6 December 2027.
Registrants are responsible for ensuring that their practice complies with the regulations applicable to their work. We encourage you to review CQC’s published guidance on delivering TDDI at events, including its examples for sporting events and multiple providers. If you are unsure how the requirements apply to your particular circumstances, contact CQC directly for clarification.