How we work
Methodology — what we measure, what we publish, and how.
Akinn is built on three commitments: published methodology, independent verification, and total transparency about what we don't yet do.
Data sources
Each care home listing combines three data sources, each with different update cadences and verification standards:
- CQC ratings and reports. Sourced directly from the Care Quality Commission's public dataset. For v1.0 we refresh manually on a fortnightly cadence and surface the inspection date on every listing. Daily automated refresh is on the roadmap (see DATA-05 in our public backlog).
- Provider-disclosed information. Fees, room types, specialisms, and availability are entered by the provider through our portal (Azure backend in development). Where the provider has not yet engaged, we mark the listing as "Awaiting provider profile" rather than guess.
- Family reviews. Verified against a real connection to the home. Submission is currently coming soon (FAM-11 — Azure backend dependency).
Verification standards
We use the badge "Akinn verified" to indicate that a listing has been confirmed by our verification team to be (a) a CQC-registered care home in the correct category, (b) operating at the listed address, and (c) reachable through the listed enquiry route. Verification is performed at first listing and re-confirmed annually.
What we don't claim
Until our review submission and enquiry workflows are live in production, we don't claim a verified-review count beyond what is in our static data. We don't claim response-time figures we can't measure. We don't claim a "trusted by N families" figure of any kind. When we have the data to back a claim, we'll make it. Not before.