Allenby Douglas Ltd

Updated 14 April 2018

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 10 and 11January 2018 and was announced. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because they provide care in people’s homes and we needed to be sure that someone would be in the office.

The inspection was conducted by two inspectors and an expert by experience. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

As part of the inspection we reviewed the information we held about the service, such as statutory notifications we had received from the provider. Statutory notifications are about important events which the provider is required to send us by law. We reviewed the Provider Information Record (PIR). The PIR is a form where we ask the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and what improvements they plan to make. We also asked the local authority and Healthwatch if they had information to share about the service provided. We used this information to plan the inspection.

During the inspection we spoke with four people who used the service and 14 relatives. We spoke with the provider and 10 staff which included the registered manager and the head of care, 7 care staff and one office staff member. We had also received feedback from 22 people, nine relatives, 12 staff and three community professionals from questionnaires we had sent prior to our inspection visit. We viewed three records which related to assessment of needs and risk. We also viewed other records which related to the management of the service such as medicine records, policies and procedures and two staff recruitment records.

Updated 14 April 2018

This inspection was carried out on the 10 and 11 January 2018.

Allenby Douglas Ltd is a family run domiciliary care agency that provides personal care and support to people living in their own homes. It provides a service to older adults some of whom are living with dementia and younger disabled adults. Not everyone using Allenby Douglas Ltd receives a regulated activity. CQC only inspects the service received by people provided with ‘personal care’: for example, help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided. At the time of our inspection 73 people were receiving personal care.

There was a registered manager in post who was present during our inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

At the last inspection, the service was rated Good overall with Outstanding in the Caring key question. At this inspection we found that the provider had further developed the service and was now rated Outstanding overall.

People continued to receive a service which was highly caring. People and their relatives found staff to be extremely caring and kind. Relatives described the care and support their family members received at the end of their life as exceptional. People and their relatives felt staff often went ‘above and beyond’ what they expected of them.

The provider took care to ensure staff were compatible with people they supported to promote positive working relationships. People, and where appropriate their relatives, were fully involved in decisions about their care and felt listened to. Staff provided information to people in a way they could understand to enable them to make decisions for themselves.

Staff treated people with the utmost dignity and respect and supported them to remain as independent as possible to enable them to continue living in their own homes. People were supported to follow their interests and to maintain links with family and the local community.

People’s received care and support that was personal to them and took into account their preferences and wishes. People were supported by staff that knew them very well, who worked flexibly and were able to respond to changes in their needs in a timely manner. Staff knew about people’s personal histories and what was important to them, therefore care was tailored to meet their needs.

The provider and registered manager had a clear vision for the service that was shared by staff and management alike.

People were supported by highly motivated staff who were passionate about their roles and making a difference to people’s lives. Staff enjoyed a positive working culture and were involved in developments within the service. Staff felt well supported and valued by the management team and colleagues.

The registered manager and provider were committed to delivering excellent quality care and had a range of checks in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service. They used their findings to make continual improvements to the service, for the benefit of people who used it.

The registered manager and provider actively sought ways of engaging with the community. They worked with partner agencies to ensure current practice and effective care.

People felt safe and comfortable with the care and support provided by staff. People continued to be protected from the risk of abuse and avoidable harm by staff who were knowledgeable about the different types of abuse and knew how to report concerns of abuse or poor practice. Risks associated with people’s needs and their environment were assessed and staff followed guidance put in place in order to minimise these.

People were supported by regular staff who they were familiar with and who were punctual and reliable. The provider followed safe recruitment procedures to ensure potential new staff were suitable to work with people in their own homes.

People received support to take their medicines safely. Only staff who had received training in the safe handling of medicine administered them. Staff monitored people’s health and supported them to access healthcare as and when necessary.

People continued to be supported by staff who had the skills and knowledge to meet their individual needs. Staff were impressed by the range and quality of training available to them and were encouraged to further their careers in care. The provider arranged bespoke training tailored to people’s specific needs.

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

Not everyone who used the service received support with meals or drinks but those that did were happy with the support they received.

Further information is in the detailed findings below