Updated 26 May 2022
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 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
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.
Registered Manager
This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.
At the time of our inspection there was not a registered manager in post. The current manager, who was present throughout the inspection, had made an application to register with CQC and this was in progress.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure that the provider or manager would be in the office to support the inspection.
Inspection activity started on 20 April 2022 and ended on 4 May 2022. We visited the location’s office on 20 April, made telephone calls to the relatives of people using the service on 21 April 2022, and spoke to staff by telephone on 4 May 2022.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. 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 the manager, the nominated individual and the chief operating officer. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider. We obtained feedback from a further three staff members. We spoke with the relatives of eight people who used the service. We reviewed a range of records, including four peoples’ risk assessments and care records. We looked at three staff files in relation to recruitment, meeting minutes and auditing and monitoring records.