Updated 8 December 2022
The inspection
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Health and Social Care Act 2008.
Inspection team
The inspection was completed by one inspector.
Service and service type
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes. The service also provides a supported living service to a person in a ‘supported living’ setting, so that they can live as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support. At the time of inspection, no people were receiving support within the supported living setting.
Registered Manager
This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.
At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.
Inspection activity started on 19 October 2022 and ended on 4 November 2022. We visited the location’s office on 19 October 2022 and 2 November 2022.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since their registration. We sought feedback from the local authority. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with 2 people who used the service and 5 relatives. We spoke with 4 members of staff including the registered manager and 3 care assistants. We reviewed 4 people’s care records, 3 staff files and multiple medicine records. We also looked at a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures.