New Horizons Management Services Ltd

Updated 28 October 2022

The Inspection

We carried out this performance review and assessment under Section 46 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act). We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements of the regulations associated with the Act and looked at the quality of the service to provide a rating.

Unlike our standard approach to assessing performance, we did not physically visit the office of the location. This is a new approach we have introduced to reviewing and assessing performance of some care at home providers. Instead of visiting the office location we use technology such as electronic file sharing and video or phone calls to engage with people using the service and staff.

Inspection team

The inspection was conducted by one inspector.

Service and service type

New Horizon’s Management Services Ltd is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.

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

In line with our new approach we gave short period notice of this inspection and explained what was involved under the new methodology. Inspection activity took place on 20 and 28 September 2022.

What we did before the inspection

We looked at all the information we held about the provider, which included information they provided us when they were registered. 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 sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

This performance review and assessment was carried out without a visit to the location's office. We used technology such as video calls to enable us to engage with people using the service and staff, and electronic file sharing to enable us to review documentation.

We spoke with one person who used the service, one relative, two staff members and the registered manager. We reviewed a range of records. This included two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision and two care plans and risk assessments. We also looked at a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures.

Updated 28 October 2022

About the service

New Horizon’s Management Services Ltd provides personal care support to people in their own home. Care and support was provided to both adults and children. 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. At the time of our inspection, two people were using the service.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

The provider's quality assurance framework did not consistently identify shortfalls or recognise how improvements could be made. We have made a recommendation for improvement.

People and their relatives told us they were happy with the standard of care and support they received. One relative told us, “I would recommend the service.” People and their relatives felt the service and staff provided safe care. People received care from consistent staff members who knew and understood their care needs well. There were enough suitable staff to cover all the care visits. Staff understood their responsibilities for safeguarding adults and children.

People's care needs were assessed before they started to use the service. People were supported by staff who received a full induction to the service. Relatives felt staff were skilled and competent. Staff spoke highly of the support they received from the registered manager. A programme of supervisions, spot checks and appraisals took place to ensure staff were well supported. People and staff were encouraged to offer feedback on the service and how it could be improved.

Procedures were in place to reduce the risk of infections and staff had regular access to personal protective equipment (PPE). Staff had received training on infection control and COVID-19 and had access to a range of infection control policies and procedures. People and relatives spoke highly of how staff had worked during the pandemic and managed the risks associated with COVID-19.

People had a person-centred care plan which was reviewed regularly to ensure their needs were met. People told us they knew how to make a complaint if they were unhappy with the service. People had access to information about the service in a format that met their needs. People and staff found the registered manager to be approachable. The registered manager was aware of their requirements in line with their CQC registration.

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. Staff treated people with dignity and respect. People’s privacy was respected by staff and staff understood the importance of promoting independence with day to day tasks.

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

Rating

This was the first inspection of the service since they were registered with us on 21 September 2017

Why we inspected

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

Follow up

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

This was an ‘inspection using remote technology’. This means we did not visit the office location and instead used technology such as electronic file sharing to gather information, and video and phone calls to engage with people using the service as part of this performance review and assessment.