Townfield Home Care

Updated 11 October 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

This inspection was carried out by 2 inspectors 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 homes.

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 we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on the 28 July 2023 and ended on 7 August 2023. We visited the service’s office on 28 and 31 July 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from professionals at the local authority who had been working 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

During the inspection we visited 5 people in their own homes to discuss their experience of care provided by Townfield Home Care. We observed medication administration and reviewed documentation kept in people’s homes in relation to their support.

We spent time at the office and reviewed a range of records including 7 people’s care records, risk assessments and recruitment files for 5 care staff. We looked at documentation relating to the management of the service such as incidents and accidents, audits and complaints. We spoke with the nominated individual, the managing director, the registered manager, a care coordinator and a member of staff. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We spoke with 6 staff by telephone. We looked at further information around policies and procedures, training, staff meetings and questionnaires. We reviewed another 3 care records and continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence. The Expert by Experience contacted 12 people and 3 relatives by telephone and asked about their views of the service.

Updated 11 October 2023

About the service

Townfield Home Care is a domiciliary care service providing personal care to adults with a range of support needs, in their own homes. 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. The service was providing personal care to 181 people at the time of inspection.

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 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, though policies and systems in the service did not always support this practice.

People’s needs were assessed, and care records developed with them and their relatives where required. Care records were updated regularly and clearly promoted preferences and choice. However, some care records did not include important information relating to people’s specific support needs, and risk assessments lacked detailed strategies to guide staff.

People gave examples of the different levels of support they received, and the managing director spoke about how care was adjusted to meet people’s changing needs. Aids and assistive technology were used in people’s homes to promote their independence and keep them safe.

Right Care:

Staff had been employed following robust recruitment procedures and were well trained. Despite some challenges, there were enough staff available to meet people’s needs and keep them safe, and continuity of care enabled staff to get to know people well. Staff respected people and treat them with dignity. The service worked closely with a range of health and social care professionals to improve people’s outcomes.

Medication was managed safely, and staff had access to personal protective equipment (PPE) to reduce the risk of infection. Staff and managers were knowledgeable with regards to actions needed in response to accidents, incidents or safeguarding concerns.

Right Culture:

Staff received a robust induction which enabled the service to share its ethos, and regular supervisions and spot checks helped instil positive values and behaviours. Staff told us they felt comfortable raising concerns with care coordinators or managers.

The provider carried out regular audits and checks and told us about recent improvements and plans for the future. People were empowered and had regular opportunities to give feedback about their care. People and their relatives commented positively about the service and its staff. One relative said, “Staff are always very cheerful. We couldn’t ask for more, they are our lifeline.” Another added, “It’s a good service. I have reliability and good carers that can help me out.” Staff we held conversations with were kind and spoke about people fondly.

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 21 August 2018).

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about moving and handling practices and partnership working. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.

We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from this concern. Please see the safe, effective and well led sections of this full report.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Townfield Home Care on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Recommendations

We have recommended the registered manager reviews documentation relating to both risk and people’s care and the provider follows best practice guidance in relation to Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) paperwork.

Follow up

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