Chair to leave regulator after ‘intensely challenging’ term

The chair of the Care Quality Commission is to leave the organisation next spring, having admitted the past three years have “at times been intensely challenging”.

Ian Dilks, who was appointed in April 2022, has a three-year term which ends in March next year and he confirmed he will not be seeking re-appointment to the embattled regulator at a board meeting today.

It means recruitment for a new chair will start shortly, with new chief executive Sir Julian Hartley due to start his tenure next week.

Mr Dilks, who was NHS Resolution chair from 2014 to 2020, said: “It has been a privilege to serve as CQC’s chair. Although the last three years have at times been intensely challenging, I am confident that the organisation is on the path to recovery and can make the changes needed to become the strong, effective regulator that people who use and work in health and social care services need and deserve…

“I have decided not to seek reappointment primarily for personal reasons, but it will also give new leadership a chance to approach the challenges we face with a fresh perspective.

He added: “I have indicated to the secretary of state that I am committed to remaining in post and fully engaged until my successor has been identified and is able to take up the reins.

“Sir Julian Hartley will be joining CQC as chief executive next week and I look forward to working with him in the months ahead, and to ensuing that my successor has a smooth transition when it is time for them to take up this demanding but hugely rewarding role.”

There have also been other recent executive and non-executive departures from the Care Quality Commission’s board. Mr Dilks confirmed the recent resignation of executive director of operations Tyson Hepple, while chief data and digital officer Mark Sutton also left earlier this year.

Non-executive director Ali Hasan has also left, with Belinda Black set to depart in January.

News of the chair’s announcement follows a series of highly critical reports into the CQC’s leadership and effectiveness as a regulator. 

Two of the reviews, by North West London Integrated Care Board chair Penny Dash, warned there were “significant internal failings which [are] hampering its ability to identify poor performance at hospitals, care homes and GP practices”.

The damning findings led health and social care secretary Wes Streeting to declare the regulator “not fit for purpose”.