Helping Hands Aintree

Updated 6 June 2023

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 carried out by 1 inspector.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.

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 48 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 24 May 2023 and ended on 30 May 2023. We visited the location’s office on 24 May 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority who work with the service. 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 this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 3 people who used the service and 2 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 6 members of staff including the registered manager, care coordinator, regional manager and care workers. We reviewed a range of records. This included 5 people's care records and multiple medication records. We looked at 2 staff files in relation to recruitment. We looked at training data and quality assurance records. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were also reviewed.

Updated 6 June 2023

About the service

Helping Hands Aintree is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to 19 people at the time of the inspection . The service provided support to older people, people living with dementia and people with a learning disability.

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

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

Right Support: People’s choice, control and independence were supported through effective care delivery. Specific training was provided to ensure staff had the required skills to support people with a learning disability and autistic people.

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.

Right Care: Staff were person centred in their approach which promoted people’s privacy and dignity.

Right Culture: Leaders created a person-centred culture. Staff in all roles were highly motivated and offered care and support that led to consistently good outcomes for people.

We have made a recommendation about governance. Governance was well-embedded into the running of the service. A range of audits were completed which were generally effective at identifying and driving improvements. However, the current systems did not pick up on a risk relating to a person’s nutritional and moving and handling needs. The registered manager took immediate action to update the persons care plans.

Individual risks were thoroughly considered, and risk management plans were in place to guide staff on how to reduce the risk of harm. The registered manager understood the importance of learning from accidents and incidents. Effective safeguarding systems were in place and safeguarding concerns were shared with the local authority when required.

Staff were recruited safely and deployed in sufficient numbers to meet people’s needs and keep them safe. Medicines were safely managed. Effective infection prevention and control procedures were in place.

Staff training was developed and delivered around people’s individual needs. When required, specialised training was delivered and overseen by a clinical lead. Initial assessments focused on people's personal likes, dislikes and preferences as well as their physical care and support needs. People and relatives felt confident staff would seek healthcare advice if they were concerned.

People were treated with kindness and respect. Staff described how they delivered personal care in a dignified and respectful manner. People and their relatives commented positively about the quality of the care provided. The registered manager encouraged people to take ownership of their care plan and actively supported them to manage their own health and wellbeing goals.

Care plans reflected people's choices, preferences and what was important to them. People's preferred routines were well documented to ensure staff had the detail they needed to care for them in the way they wanted. People's communication needs and any assistance they needed was recorded. There was an appropriate complaints management system in place. People were supported to make decisions about their preferences for end of life care and this was recorded in their care plans.

The service was well led, and the registered manager understood the importance and responsibility of their role. They worked hard to embed a positive culture within the organisation and understood the importance of regularly speaking with people and their relatives and using this feedback to improve the service. The views of people using the service were at the centre of quality monitoring and assurance arrangements.

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

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 10 January 2022 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

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

Recommendations

We have made a recommendation about audits. . Please see the well led section of this report for further details.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.