Care Inspectorate

Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (SCSWIS) or Care Inspectorate was set up in April 2011 by the Scottish Government as a single regulatory body for social work and social care services, including child protection and the integration of children's services. The new organisation took on work in these areas previously carried out by:

• Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education (HMIE)
• Social Work Inspection Agency (SWIA) and
• The Care Commission

"The Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care," known as "The Care Commission," regulated care services between 2002 and 2011. It had responsibility for the registration and inspection of all care services in Scotland.

The Care Commission began work in April 2002 as an independent regulator under the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001. The key principles of the Commission in regulating care services were threefold; keeping people safe; promoting dignity and choice, and supporting independence.

The Social Work Inspection Agency (SWIA) had the remit to inspect all social work services in Scotland, and to report publicly and to parliament on the quality of these services, locally and nationally.

Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education (HMIE) in Scotland had the remit of scrutinising education services, and had a specific role to monitor child protection services. It was the latter function which was transferred to the Care Inspectorate (SCSWIS) in 2011.

The Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010 came into force in April 2011. It aimed to reduce and to streamline the number of Government agencies, including the different regulators. As a result, the previous work of the Care Commission, of SWIA and of HMIE (children's services remit) were absorbed into the new Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (SCSWIS). Care services in the country became regulated by the latter body . From 15 September 2011, SCSWIS adopted the simpler working name of the Care Inspectorate.