We carried out a review of the data available to us about Hightower Care Services on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Hightower Care Services, you can give feedback on this service.
Hightower Care services is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to older people living in their own homes. At the time of this inspection, nine people received the regulated activity, personal care.
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 felt safe with staff and there were systems in place to safeguard people from the risk of abuse. Risks to people's health and welfare were identified and actions taken to mitigate the risk. People received their prescribed medicines safely, from staff who had completed the required training and had their competency to do so assessed. Recruitment practices required strengthening and the registered manager addressed this straight away.
People received care from a small team of staff who were well trained and very well supported. People and their relatives praised staff's knowledge and felt they had the necessary skills to meet people's needs. Staff promoted people's health by supporting people to access health care services when required. They supported people with eating and drinking where this was identified as a need in their care plan.
People said they were treated with kindness and in a respectful way by the staff. People's privacy and dignity was maintained. Staff knew it was important to encourage people to maintain their independence.
Staff were knowledgeable about people's support needs. A clear complaints process was in place. Whilst no-one was currently receiving end of life care we have made a recommendation about documenting people's future wishes for end of life 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.
There were quality assurance systems in place to help monitor the quality of the service. Staff told us they enjoyed working at the service and the management team supported them.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
This service was registered with us on 17/05/2018 and this is the first inspection.
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
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.