Age Concern Home Care - South Manchester

Updated 22 December 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 and 1 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.

Service and service type

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

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 a short period notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 10 November 2023 and ended on 23 November 2023. We visited the location’s office on 14 November 2023.

What we did before inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals 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 8 people who used the service and 9 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 7 members of staff including the registered manager, assistant manager, care manager, field support officer and care workers.

We reviewed a range of records. This included 3 people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at records in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were also reviewed.

Updated 22 December 2023

About the service

Age Concern Home Care – South Manchester is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats. It provides a service to older people and younger adults with various needs, including people living with physical disabilities and dementia. At the time of this inspection 57 people were 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

People's medicines were not always safely managed and medicine recording systems were not robust. Risks related to people’s medicines were not always recorded.

Staff rotas showed there was no travel time between calls. Some people told us staff don't always arrive on time for their visits, and don't stay the full length because staff don't have time to do so. We also received mixed feedback from people about them receiving regular staff for their care visits.

Care plans did not always contain information about people’s culture or religion and how this impacted on their care needs. People’s communication needs were not always detailed in the care records.

Auditing systems were not always robust and auditing processes had not picked up on the discrepancies we found during this inspection. Governance systems required improvement.

Staff were recruited safely and had the necessary safety checks in place before starting work, including a criminal record check to confirm they were suitable to work with people. People were protected from the risks of abuse and staff were trusted to keep them safe. Staff had received training in how to safeguard 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; however, the systems in the service did not always support this practice. The provider had no specific mental capacity assessments in place. We have made a recommendation about the provider reviewing their systems in place to work within the principles of the MCA.

People's needs were assessed prior to starting with the service and care plans were developed according to people’s needs. Care plans reflected a good understanding of people's needs.

People's rights were promoted. Staff had received training in equality and diversity, and they were committed to ensuring people were treated well. Staff knew people's history and preferences and used this knowledge to support them in the way they wanted. People’s views and decisions about care were incorporated when their care packages. People were involved in making decisions about their day-to-day care. People were treated with dignity, privacy and respect.

Staff praised the registered manager and the wider management team within the service, they felt supported in their roles.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 16 October 2017).

Why we inspected

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

Enforcement and Recommendations

We have identified a breach in relation to good governance.

We have made a recommendation about the provider reviewing their systems in place to work within the principles of the MCA.

Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

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.