HC-One is one of the United Kingdom’s largest care home providers, delivering residential, nursing, and specialist dementia care to thousands of individuals across the country. As the UK population ages and demand for high-quality long-term care increases, HC-One has invested heavily in frameworks that help its care homes maintain consistent quality, meet regulatory requirements, and deliver a compassionate environment for residents. Among these initiatives, the Touchstone framework stands out as a structured, practical, and values-driven approach to ensuring that care delivery is not only compliant but also deeply person-centred. This article explores HC One Touchstone in detail — from its origins and purpose to its impact on residents, staff, and the broader care sector — providing a clear picture of why it is regarded as an essential part of HC-One’s quality assurance process.
Understanding the Context: HC One Touchstone and the UK Care Sector
Before delving into the specifics of Touchstone, it is important to understand HC-One’s role in the UK care sector. The organisation operates hundreds of care homes across England, Scotland, and Wales, catering to residents with diverse needs, from individuals requiring minimal assistance to those with complex health conditions. In such a vast network, consistency is a constant challenge — what works well in one home must be replicated across many, despite differences in staff experience, building layout, and community context. The UK care sector is also highly regulated, with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in England, the Care Inspectorate in Scotland, and the Care Inspectorate Wales all setting rigorous inspection standards. These regulations are not simply a matter of passing inspections; they are designed to safeguard residents’ dignity, safety, and wellbeing. For an organisation like HC-One, maintaining compliance while also fostering an environment of warmth and personalised attention requires a carefully planned operational strategy. This is where Touchstone comes in — a quality framework that standardises best practice while allowing each home to retain its unique character.
What is the HC One Touchstone Framework?
Touchstone is HC-One’s internal quality monitoring and improvement programme. It is designed as a comprehensive tool to assess every aspect of care home performance, from the physical environment to clinical care practices, staff training, resident engagement, and leadership effectiveness. The name “Touchstone” reflects its function: in historical terms, a touchstone was a black stone used to test the quality of precious metals, and HC-One has borrowed this metaphor to emphasise that the framework is a means of assessing and verifying the quality of care provided. Unlike a one-off audit, Touchstone is an ongoing, cyclical process. Homes are regularly assessed using a combination of structured observation, documentation review, staff interviews, and resident feedback. The assessment is thorough, often taking into account dozens of criteria across multiple domains, and results in a rating or evaluation that is then used to guide targeted improvement plans. This ensures that quality assurance is not reactive but proactive, identifying potential weaknesses before they result in poor outcomes.
Core Principles of the HC-One Touchstone Framework
At the heart of Touchstone are several guiding principles that align with both regulatory expectations and HC-One’s corporate values. These include person-centred care, safety and compliance, continuous improvement, transparency, and staff empowerment. Person-centred care ensures that residents are treated as individuals, with their preferences, histories, and needs respected. Safety and compliance mean that homes operate within legal and professional standards, reducing the risk of harm to residents. Continuous improvement recognises that no care home is ever “finished” — there is always room to refine processes, enhance skills, and innovate. Transparency is key to building trust, both with regulators and with families, and staff empowerment acknowledges that care quality depends heavily on the competence, motivation, and wellbeing of the workforce. These principles are woven into the Touchstone criteria, ensuring that every evaluation covers not just technical compliance but the lived experience of residents.
Structure and Domains of Touchstone Assessment
The Touchstone framework typically covers several major domains, each containing specific assessment criteria. While HC-One may adapt these domains over time, they generally include:
- Leadership and Management – Assessing whether the home has strong, effective leadership that can motivate staff, manage resources efficiently, and respond to challenges.
- Clinical Care and Safety – Evaluating medication management, infection control practices, pressure sore prevention, and response to medical emergencies.
- Resident Experience – Measuring how residents feel about their care, including dignity, respect, activities, and opportunities for social interaction.
- Environment and Facilities – Reviewing cleanliness, accessibility, safety features, and whether the home environment is pleasant and supportive of resident independence.
- Workforce Development – Looking at staff training, supervision, and opportunities for professional growth.
- Governance and Compliance – Ensuring that documentation, reporting, and regulatory obligations are consistently met.
By breaking down quality into these categories, Touchstone allows HC-One to create a detailed profile of each home’s strengths and areas for development.
Implementation Process: How Touchstone Works in Practice
Implementing the Touchstone framework involves a structured process that ensures every care home receives the same level of scrutiny and support. Typically, the process begins with pre-assessment preparation, where home managers gather necessary documentation, from care plans to training records. This is followed by the on-site evaluation, where an HC-One quality team visits the home. The visit may last one or more days, depending on the size and complexity of the home, and includes a blend of observation, interviews, and paperwork review. Feedback is often given both verbally at the end of the visit and in a detailed written report shortly after. Homes that score well are encouraged to share best practices across the network, while those with lower scores receive targeted support. The process is cyclical, with re-assessments scheduled to track progress and ensure that improvements are sustained.
Benefits for Residents
From the residents’ perspective, Touchstone aims to create a safer, more engaging, and more dignified living environment. For example, the regular evaluation of clinical care and safety ensures that medication errors are minimised and that infection control protocols are followed. Similarly, the focus on resident experience ensures that activities are not just tokenistic but genuinely enriching, catering to individual interests. The fact that staff training is monitored under the workforce development domain means residents are more likely to receive care from well-trained professionals who understand both the technical and emotional aspects of their role. In essence, Touchstone serves as a protective measure, helping to ensure that residents live not only in safety but also with purpose and joy.
Benefits for Staff
For staff members, Touchstone offers both accountability and development opportunities. The framework’s detailed assessment criteria help staff understand exactly what is expected of them and where they can improve. For example, if infection control scores are low, targeted training can be provided. This not only improves care quality but also boosts staff confidence, as they can see tangible improvements in their skills. The leadership and management domain ensures that managers receive feedback on their performance, helping them to better support their teams. Furthermore, the cyclical nature of Touchstone means staff are continually engaged in improvement, rather than facing sudden, high-pressure inspections without preparation.
Regulatory Compliance and Reputation Management
One of the most practical benefits of Touchstone is its role in maintaining compliance with UK regulatory bodies. By mirroring or even exceeding the criteria used by the Care Quality Commission and other inspectors, Touchstone ensures that homes are “inspection-ready” at all times. This not only helps to avoid regulatory penalties but also enhances HC One Touchstone’s reputation among families, commissioners, and the wider community. A care home that performs well in Touchstone assessments is more likely to perform well in official inspections, and positive inspection reports can be a powerful marketing tool in an increasingly competitive sector.
Challenges in Applying the Touchstone Framework
While the benefits of Touchstone are clear, implementation is not without challenges. The process is resource-intensive, requiring dedicated quality teams, time away from routine duties, and robust data management systems. In homes facing staffing shortages, preparing for a Touchstone visit can add to existing pressures. There is also the challenge of ensuring that the framework is applied consistently across all homes, given variations in local leadership styles and community contexts. HC One Touchstone addresses these issues by providing centralised training for assessors, offering managerial support to homes preparing for assessments, and ensuring that the framework evolves based on feedback from both staff and residents.
The Role of Feedback and Continuous Improvement
Touchstone is not static. HC One Touchstone regularly reviews the framework to ensure it reflects current best practice and emerging priorities in the care sector. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic prompted a renewed focus on infection control, PPE use, and remote communication with families. Feedback from staff is also crucial — if certain criteria are found to be unclear or impractical, they can be adjusted. This willingness to adapt keeps Touchstone relevant and ensures it remains a tool for improvement rather than a bureaucratic burden.
Technology and Data in Touchstone Assessments
In recent years, HC One Touchstone has increasingly integrated technology into the Touchstone process. Digital care records, online training modules, and real-time reporting systems allow for faster data collection and analysis. Homes can track their performance against Touchstone criteria over time, identifying trends and spotting potential issues before they escalate. This digital integration not only improves efficiency but also provides a transparent record of progress that can be shared with regulators and families.
Impact on HC-One’s Position in the UK Care Market
By implementing a robust and transparent quality assurance framework like Touchstone, HC-One strengthens its competitive position. In a market where families often make quick decisions based on limited information, the promise of consistent quality can be decisive. Touchstone also supports HC-One’s corporate mission of being “the kind care company,” turning that slogan into measurable actions and outcomes. The framework demonstrates to stakeholders — from local councils to private pay families — that HC One Touchstone is committed to ongoing improvement, not just meeting the bare minimum.
The Future of Touchstone and Quality Care in UK Homes
Looking ahead, Touchstone is likely to continue evolving in response to demographic changes, technological advances, and shifts in regulatory focus. There is growing interest in using predictive analytics to anticipate care needs, incorporating more resident-led evaluations, and expanding the framework to include environmental sustainability measures. As public expectations of care homes continue to rise, frameworks like Touchstone will become even more critical in ensuring that large providers can maintain high standards across diverse locations.
Conclusion
The HC One Touchstone framework represents a thoughtful, structured, and person-centred approach to quality assurance in the UK care sector. By breaking down quality into specific, measurable domains and applying them consistently across its homes, HC One Touchstone not only meets regulatory standards but also fosters an environment where residents can thrive and staff can excel. While the process demands significant investment in time and resources, the benefits — from enhanced resident wellbeing to improved staff morale and stronger regulatory compliance — make it a cornerstone of HC-One’s operational strategy. In an era when trust in care providers is paramount, Touchstone provides a transparent, adaptable, and effective means of demonstrating that quality is not just a promise but a lived reality.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. What is the HC-One Touchstone framework?
Touchstone is HC-One’s internal quality assurance programme, designed to assess and improve care home performance across multiple domains, including leadership, clinical care, resident experience, and compliance.
2. How often are Touchstone assessments carried out?
Assessments are cyclical and regular, though exact frequency can vary depending on the home’s needs and previous performance, ensuring continuous improvement.
3. Does Touchstone replace official CQC inspections?
No. Touchstone is an internal framework that complements, rather than replaces, inspections by the Care Quality Commission or other regulators.
4. How does Touchstone benefit care home residents?
It improves safety, personalisation of care, and daily living experiences by ensuring staff are well-trained and care processes are closely monitored.
5. Can Touchstone criteria change over time?
Yes. HC-One updates the framework to reflect best practice, regulatory changes, and feedback from staff, residents, and families.