Choices Homecare (Bootle)

Updated 9 July 2019

The inspection:

We carried out our inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. Our inspection checked whether the provider was 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.

Inspection team:

The inspection was completed by one inspector 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 houses and flats.

The service had a registered manager. 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.

Notice of inspection:

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a domiciliary service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

What we did:

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

We spoke with twelve people who used the service. We also spoke to four relatives to give us a greater understanding of people's experiences of care.

We spoke with the registered manager, the deputy manager and ten care staff.

We reviewed a range of records. This included ten people’s care records and medication records. We looked at five staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection:

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We spoke with ten members of staff.

Updated 9 July 2019

About the service:

Warren Care is a domiciliary care service that provides personal care and support to adults and children in their own homes. At the time of the inspection, Warren Care was providing care and support for 280 people.

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:

People told us they had confidence in the staff who took care of them. People received care from staff who had been supported in their role with appropriate training and supervision. Staff were kind and caring and knew people's needs and preferences well.

Regular assessments and audits were carried out to determine the quality and safety of the care being provided.

Risk to people was assessed and measures were put in place to support people safely. The service encouraged people to remain as independent as possible. It was important for people to manage remaining in their own home for as long as possible.

Feedback was sought from people living at the service, their relatives and staff to ensure standards were being maintained and to help drive forward improvements.

Whilst people were happy with the care they received, they did not always receive care from the same members of staff. Where staff changes were made, it was not always communicated well to people receiving care.

We have made a recommendation about the deployment of staff.

The registered manager and registered provider had met their legal requirements with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). They promoted a transparent culture within the service.

Rating at last inspection:

The last rating for this service was good. (Report published January 2018).

Why we inspected:

This inspection was prompted by the service’s change of address. The rating for this service remained ''Good'' overall.

Follow up:

This inspection was part of our scheduled plan of visiting services to check the safety and quality of care people received.

We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.

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