It can be very difficult to find decent breeders of poodle crosses, particularly when they're being crossed to CKCSs.
Some of the most serious health issues affecting the CKCS (most notably Syringomyelia and Mitral Valve Disease) can't be reliably avoided simply by crossing a CKCS to another breed. It's very rare to find a breeder of CKCS crosses who is having an MRI done on the CKCS parent (to check for signs of the skull malformation which causes Syringomyelia) and who is also following the recommended breeding protocol to avoid MVD. The latter involves not breeding from any CKCS until they have been screened by a cardiologist and declared free of heart murmurs at 2.5 years old (so no CKCS should be having/siring pups younger than this) AND that dog's parents have also been declared free of heart murmurs at 5 years old.
You also need to be careful with breeders of any poodle crosses that they're not skipping the DNA test for vWD type 1. Many cross breeders skip this test as the condition isn't found in the breeds most commonly crossed with poodles so truly affected puppies cannot be produced however, although very rare, it is possible for carriers of vWD1 to develop some level of symptoms so it's really important that the test is still done on the poodle parent.
Any breeder of crosses, as an absolute minimum, should be doing all health testing (and following any relevant breeding protocols) for conditions which are potentially shared between the two breeds they're using. Ideally they should be utilising all available testing and screening schemes for both breeds so they know exactly what they're potentially producing in terms of pups being carriers for genetic conditions.
In the case of cocker x poodle the minimum level of testing would be current BVA eye tests (these are repeated annually) for both parents, a current BVA gonioscopy (these are repeated every three years) for the cocker parent and DNA tests for prcd-PRA (for both) and vWD1 (for the poodle parent). That really is the absolute minimum that should be done when crossing these two breeds. Ideally they should also have done DNA tests for Macrothrombocytopenia (both), Adult Onset Neuropathy (cocker), Exercise Induced Collapse (cocker), Familial Nephropathy (cocker) and Acral Mutilation Syndrome (cocker, if they're working type).
Of course health testing is only part of being a responsible breeder but it's a good starting starting point as a decent breeder won't have scrimped on the health testing side of things.
If you like the poodle crosses then I'd also suggest looking at pedigree poodles of whichever size would be appropriate. If you like spaniels but also the idea of a curly coat have you investigated Irish Water Spaniels? They're pretty rare but still worth a look if they might be just the thing you're looking for.
Although there are plenty of dodgy pedigree breeders as well it is generally easier to find a truly good breeder of them than crosses, you also have the advantage of the breed clubs which tend to have quite stringent codes of ethics which they require their members to adhere to.