Background to this inspection
Updated
28 June 2019
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 Care Act 2014.
Inspection team
The inspection was conducted by one 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.
The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. 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.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 2 days’ 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 site visit activity took place on 24 May 2019. We visited the office location to see the manager and office staff; and to review care records and policies and procedures.
What we did before the inspection
Our inspection was informed by evidence we already held about the service, such as notifications. These are events that happen in the service that the provider is required to tell us about.
Providers are required to send us key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information, called a Provider Information Return (PIR), helps support our inspections.
We checked for feedback from members of the public and local authorities.
We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with four people who used the service.
We spoke with the registered manager and three care support workers.
We reviewed four people's care records, three staff personnel files, audits and other records about the management and quality assurance of the service.
After the inspection
We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data, policies and quality assurance records.
Updated
28 June 2019
About the service
11b Brackley Road is a domiciliary care agency which was providing personal care to 41 people at the time of the inspection.
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 were supported by staff who put them at the heart of what they do. Staff told us, “The best thing about my job is the clientele…they are looked after to the best of my ability."
People and relatives were happy with the service they received and spoke positively to us about staff with whom they had good relationships.
Recruitment checks took place before staff started work and there were enough staff available to meet people's care and support needs.
Staff received comprehensive training to enable them to carry out their roles effectively.
Staff enjoyed working at the service and felt supported by each other and the registered manager.
Care records contained clear information covering all aspects of people's individualised care and support. Information about people was written in a respectful and personalised way. People and their relatives were involved in the planning and delivery of their care.
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.
When there were problems, the registered manager dealt with them appropriately and put measures in place to reduce the likelihood of recurrence.
The registered manager recognised the importance of retaining staff and was keen to improve and extend the service by using new technology and promoting good practice.
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 17 October 2016).
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for 11B Brackley Road on our website at www.cqc.org.uk
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.