How it works
Four ways to get ready, and one free account that covers all of them. Start wherever your next worry is.
Courses
Self-guided and built with the sector, for when you want to understand something properly rather than revise it. Work at your own pace and keep the certificate at the end.
Practice questions
Real inspection questions, each with the regulation behind it, prompts to structure your thinking, and what a strong answer covers. Say your answer out loud, record it if it helps, then mark yourself honestly.
Training exercises
The judgement calls rather than the recall: putting a safeguarding response in the right order, matching evidence to a key question, deciding what CQC needs to be told about.
Mock interview
Timed, unprompted, no notes and no model answers. The closest thing to sitting in the room. You will not get through every question, and that is the point.
Signing in
There is no password. There never has been.
Put your email in and we send you a link. Clicking it signs you in on that device and keeps you signed in. If you have not used the platform before, that same link creates your account, which is why there is no separate sign-up step to worry about.
It is one less thing to forget, and it means there is no password of yours stored anywhere that could ever leak.
Questions people ask
Is it really free?
Yes. Everything on the platform is free, there is no trial and there is nothing to upgrade to. Birdie makes software for homecare providers, and this is part of how we support the sector.
Do I need an account?
Yes, for anything beyond this page. An account is free and takes one email, and it is what lets your answers, ratings and progress still be there next time.
There is no separate sign-up: putting your email into the sign-in box creates the account if you do not already have one.
What happens to my recordings?
They never leave your device. Recording happens entirely in your browser, nothing is uploaded, and no audio is ever stored on our servers.
They are also not kept between visits: close the page and they are gone. In the mock interview you can download the recording at the end if you want to keep it.
Do you sell my data?
No, and we never will. Signing in with a link rather than a password also means there is no password of yours stored anywhere that could leak.
Should I put real details about the people I support?
No. Please never enter real names or identifying details anywhere here, including in your written answers. This is a rehearsal space, not a record. Answer as you would in the room, but keep the specifics generic.
How many questions are there?
Thirty-six, across seven categories, each with the regulation it sits under and what a strong answer covers.
Can I practise the same question again?
As often as you like. Rating yourself is what decides which ones come back round: anything you mark as "almost" or "practise again" is offered first when you choose a run based on your weak spots.
Can I use it on my phone?
Yes, and it is built for that. Ten minutes between visits is enough to be useful. Recording works on a phone too, so you can answer out loud in the car.
I did not get the sign-in email
Check your spam folder, then check the address for a typo. Links expire after a short while, so ask for a new one if it has been sitting. Some work email filters strip links, in which case a personal address will get through.
Ready when you are
One free account opens the courses, all 36 questions with model answers, the training exercises and the timed mock interview.
Create a free account