Be Cared For Limited

Updated 15 August 2019

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked 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.

Inspection team:

Our inspection was conducted by one inspector 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.

Service and service type:

Be Cared For Limited is a domiciliary care service, registered to provide personal care to people living in their own homes in the community.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). This means they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection:

We gave the service notice of the inspection visit. This is because senior staff are often out of the office providing care and we needed to be sure that they would be in the office to participate in the inspection. On 8 July 2019 our expert by experience telephoned people who used the service to seek their feedback on the service. Our inspector visited the office on 11 and 15 July to interview the manager and to review care records and policies and procedures.

What we did:

In planning our inspection, we reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. This included any notifications (events which happened in the service that the provider is required to tell us about). We also assessed the information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

During our inspection we spoke with six people and two relatives to ask about their experience of the care provided. We also spoke with the manager and two care workers.

We reviewed a range of written records including two care plans, two staff recruitment files and information relating to the administration of medicines and the auditing and monitoring of service provision.

Updated 15 August 2019

About the service:

Be Cared For Limited is a domiciliary care service. It is registered to provide personal care to people living in their own homes in the community, including older people and people living with dementia. The service operates in Bingham and neighbouring villages. At the time of our inspection, 21 people were receiving a personal care service.

People’s experience of using this service:

Staff understood people’s individual care needs and preferences and used this knowledge to provide them with flexible, responsive support which enhanced the quality of their lives. The provider took great care to involve people and their relatives in planning and reviewing their care and to deploy staffing resources in accordance with their individual preferences.

Staff worked together in a mutually supportive way and communicated effectively, internally and externally. Training and supervision systems were in place to provide staff with the knowledge and skills they required to meet people’s needs effectively. People were supported to eat and drink food of their choice.

Staff were kind and attentive in their approach and were committed to supporting people to maintain their independence. Staff worked in a non-discriminatory way and promoted people’s dignity and privacy. Staff worked collaboratively with local health and social care services to ensure people had access to specialist support if required. Systems were in place to ensure effective infection prevention and control and people's medicines were managed safely. Staff were aware of people’s rights under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and supported people to have maximum choice and control of their lives, in the least restrictive way possible. The policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People’s individual risk assessments were reviewed and updated to take account of changes in their needs. Staff knew how to recognise and report any concerns to keep people safe from harm. Staff recruitment was safe.

The registered manager provided strong but supportive leadership and was liked and respected by everyone connected to the service. A range of audits was in place to monitor the quality and safety of service provision. There was organisational learning from significant incidents and formal complaints were rare. The provider had addressed the one area for improvement identified at our last inspection and was committed to the continuous improvement of the service in the future.

Rating at last inspection:

Good (Published July 2016)

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection based on the rating at the last inspection. At this inspection we were pleased to find the quality of the service had been sustained in some areas and improved in others. The overall rating of the service remains Good.

Follow up:

We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.