SureCare Bromley Limited

Updated 29 December 2018

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.

This inspection took place on the 28 November 2018. One inspector carried out the inspection. We gave the provider two days’ notice of the inspection as we needed to make sure the manager would be available during the inspection. Before the inspection we looked at all the information we had about the service. This information included statutory notifications that the provider had sent to CQC. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send us by law. We used information the provider sent us in the Provider Information Return. This is 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. We also received feedback from the local authority that commissions services from the provider. We used this information to help inform our inspection planning.

During the inspection we spoke with two people using the service and three relatives to gain their views about receiving care. We spoke with the manager, the provider and two care staff about how the service was being run and what it was like to work there. We looked at four people’s care records, three staff recruitment records and records relating to the management of the service such as medicines, staff training, supervision, quality assurance audits and policies and procedures.

Updated 29 December 2018

SureCare Bromley Limited is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care and support to people in their own homes. CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with ‘personal care’; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided. At the time of the inspection the provider was providing ‘personal care’ to 13 people.

This inspection took place on the 28th November 2018. We gave the provider two days’ notice of the inspection as we needed to make sure the manager would be available. This was our first inspection of the service.

The service did not have a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. The current manager had managed the service since the 15th of October 2018. At the time of this inspection they had applied to the CQC to become the registered manager for the service.

The service had safeguarding procedures in place and staff had a clear understanding of these procedures. Appropriate recruitment checks took place before staff started work. There was enough staff available to meet people’s needs. Risks to people were assessed to ensure their needs were safely met. There were systems in place for monitoring, investigating and learning from incidents and accidents. People were receiving their medicines as prescribed by health care professionals. Staff had received training in infection control and food hygiene, and they were aware of the steps to take to reduce the risk of the spread of infections.

People’s care needs were assessed before they started using the service. Staff received supervision and training relevant to people’s needs. People where supported with eating and drinking when required. People had access to a GP and other health care professionals when they needed them. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People told us staff were kind and caring, their privacy and dignity was respected, and they received personalised care that met their needs. They and their relatives had been consulted about their care and support needs. They knew how to complain if they needed to. People could understand written information provided to them however information was available in different formats when it was required. Staff had received training on equality and diversity and they supported people according to their diverse needs. No one using the service required support with end of life care, however the service had access to health care professionals for this type of support if it was required.

The manager and the provider monitored the quality of service that people received. They used feedback from people following satisfaction surveys and spot checks to evaluate and make improvements at the service. The manager, the provider and staff worked closely with health and social care professionals to ensure people received good quality care. Staff said they enjoyed working at the service and they received good support from the manager and the provider. There was an out of hours on call system in operation that ensured management support and advice was available for staff when they needed it.