Buttercup Home Care T/A Visiting Angels

Buttercup Home Care T/A Visiting Angels is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people in their own homes. The service provides support to younger and older adults who may require support due to a physical or mental disability. At the time of our inspection there were 21 people using the service.

Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do, we also consider any wider social care provided.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

The service did not always identify, assess and mitigate risks to people. People’s care records were not reviewed regularly and risk assessments were not updated where increased risk was indicated. We found that no harm had come to the people at this stage, but the risk of harm was increased.

The quality assurance and audit systems in the service were not effective. Shortfalls in quality and practice were not identified which meant that practice was not improved, and the risk to people was increased.

Accidents and incidents were not always identified and recorded. The service did not evaluate their practice so the opportunity for lessons learnt was missed.

People told us they got their medication as prescribed however systems were not robust enough to highlight issues in the management, administration and recording of medication.

Mental capacity assessments had been developed for the people using the service however the outcome or need of these was not always clear. We have made a recommendation in this area.

Some people may have benefitted from advice and guidance from other health care professionals, but this had not been requested. We made a recommendation in this area.

Feedback from people and relatives who used the service was positive. There was a system in place to promote communication between the staff and relatives, this helped develop positive relationships across the service.

Staff were reported to be respectful of people’s dignity and provide people with flexible, attentive care. One family member told us: “I feel supported knowing [relative] is supported, we are like a team.”

People and staff found the registered manager supportive and approachable. There was a positive and caring ethos promoted across the service with staff exhibiting this in their interactions with relatives and people in their care.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the Care Quality Commission website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 15 February 2021 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service

We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the safe, effective and well-led sections of this full report.

You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.

As a result of the inspection the provider is developing an improvement plan and reviews of their processes and practice is underway to help mitigate the risk to people.

Enforcement and Recommendations

We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to monitor the service and will take further action if needed.

We have identified breaches in relation to the safety of the service and the governance and oversite of the service. Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

Full information about CQC’s regulatory response to the more serious concerns found during inspections is added to reports after any representations and appeals have been concluded.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.