The Register of Service Providers (Prescribed Information and Miscellaneous Amendments) (Wales) Regulations 2023

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations are made under powers conferred on the Welsh Ministers by the Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act 2016 (anaw 2) (“the 2016 Act”). The purpose of these Regulations is to prescribe certain additional information which must be shown on each entry in the register of service providers maintained by the Welsh Ministers under section 38(1) of the 2016 Act. These Regulations also require service providers to notify the Welsh Ministers of telephone number and electronic mail address changes for services regulated under the 2016 Act.

Regulation 2 provides that additional information, in the form of an electronic mail address and telephone number for the service, is prescribed under the power conferred by section 38(2)(g) of the 2016 Act. This additional prescribed information must be shown on the register in respect of each place at, from or in relation to which, a service is provided.

Regulations 3 and 4 amend the Regulated Services (Registration) (Wales) Regulations 2017 to impose a requirement on applicants seeking to provide a care home service, a secure accommodation service or a residential family centre service to provide the electronic mail address for the premises at which it is intended to provide the regulated service. This amendment ensures that all applicants must provide this information when making applications for registration and for variation of registration for all regulated services under the 2016 Act.

Regulations 5 and 6 amend the Regulated Services (Annual Returns) (Wales) Regulations 2017 to include a requirement for the electronic mail address and telephone number in respect of each place at, from or in relation to which, a service is provided to be included as part of a service provider’s annual return.

Regulations 7 to 16 amend the following Regulations to add an additional notification requirement on service providers of any change in a regulated service’s electronic mail address or telephone number:

(a) the Regulated Services (Service Providers and Responsible Individuals) (Wales) Regulations 2017,

(b) the Regulated Fostering Services (Service Providers and Responsible Individuals) (Wales) Regulations 2019,

(c) the Regulated Advocacy Services (Service Providers and Responsible Individuals) (Wales) Regulations 2019,

(d) the Adult Placement Services (Service Providers and Responsible Individuals) (Wales) Regulations 2019, and

(e) the Regulated Adoption Services (Service Providers and Responsible Individuals) (Wales) Regulations 2019.

The Welsh Ministers’ Code of Practice on the carrying out of Regulatory Impact Assessments was considered in relation to these Regulations. As a result, a regulatory impact assessment has been prepared as to the likely costs and benefits of complying with these Regulations. A copy can be obtained from the Department of Health and Social Services, Welsh Government, Cathays Park, Cardiff, CF10 3NQ and is published on www.gov.wales.