Health watchdog, the Care Quality Commission (CQC), has announced Kate Terroni as the new Chief Inspector of Adult Social Care (ASC).

Ms Terroni is due to take over the role from Debbie Westhead, who has been interim Chief Inspector, in May.

The new chief inspector is currently the Director of Adult Social Care at Oxfordshire County Council where she has embedded co production in adult social care throughout the county and provided clear leadership across the health and care system.

Ian Trenholm, chief executive at CQC, said: “I am absolutely delighted to welcome Kate to CQC as chief inspector of Adult Social Care. Kate has a strong track record in social care and her passion and commitment to improving outcomes for people is evident throughout her career.

“I also want to take this opportunity to thank Debbie Westhead for continuing to do such a great job in the role on an interim basis.

“I have no doubt that Kate will build on Andrea Sutcliffe’s impressive legacy to keep driving up standards in adult social care to make sure each and every person experiences the high quality care they need.”

Ms Terroni is also co-chair of the ADASS workforce network and was previously Deputy Director of Commissioning at Oxfordshire County Council.

She said: “I am delighted to be taking up the role of Chief Inspector of Adult Social Care for CQC. It is a real privilege to have the opportunity to build on the work of Andrea Sutcliffe; having an unrelenting focus on quality outcomes for individuals through good quality care provision.

“To date I have spent my career within local government as a qualified social worker, running operational teams, commissioning services and finally having the opportunity to serve as director of Adult Social Care of Oxfordshire County Council.

“This is an incredibly important time for adult social care, awaiting the Green Paper, while at the same time encouraging the delivery of high quality in a challenging environment.

“I am passionate about putting people who use services and their families at the heart of everything we do. I believe that we can improve outcomes for people through ensuring the availability of good quality care and that we regulate in a way which encourages services to integrate around the individual.”