Mellowcare Ltd

Updated 10 June 2022

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 Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

Our inspection was conducted by one inspector.

Service and service type

Mellowcare Ltd is a domiciliary care service, registered to provide personal care to people living in their own homes.

The service had a manager who has applied to register with the Care Quality Commission. This means the provider is legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure the provider or manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

The inspection took place on 4 May 2022 at the provider’s offices.

What we did before the inspection

In planning our inspection, we reviewed information we had received about the service. This included information shared with us by other organisations including the clinical commissioning group, the local authority contract monitoring and adult safeguarding teams.

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.

During the inspection

We spoke with one care staff, the manager and the provider.

We reviewed a range of written records including care plans, three staff recruitment files, supervision records and information relating to the monitoring of service provision.

After the inspection

We spoke with two staff members and two relatives of people who use the service. We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found.

Updated 10 June 2022

About the service

Mellowcare Ltd a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes. The Care Quality Commission (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, 14 people were receiving a personal care service.

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

There were systems in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service, management carried out regular checks.

Medicines were managed safely. Staff were trained in medication and had their competency assessed.

People were supported by a regular team of care staff and said they received their calls on time. People were confident care staff had received appropriate training to meet their needs; we saw this was in line with current guidelines.

There were enough staff to effectively meet the current packages of care which supported people’s needs. People were supported safely and any risk regarding their care was assessed. Staff were aware of how to report any concerns about neglect or abuse and were confident if they raised a concern It would be addressed.

People’s care was provided by kind and caring staff and people told us they treated them with respect. People's individual risk assessments and care plans reflected individual needs and were reviewed regularly.

The provider worked in partnership with other agencies to make sure people received the right care and 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; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

Staff had access to sufficient supplies of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and received regular updates from the provider on the management of risks related to COVID-19.

Rating at the last Inspection

At the last inspection this service was rated as requires improvement (Published 15 April 2020)

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

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 until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.