Updated 4 April 2020
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
This inspection was carried out by one inspector and an Expert by Experience who contacted people and their family members by telephone. 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 homes.
The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are 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 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection. The inspection started on the 6 February 2020 and finished on the 11 February 2020. We visited the office location on both these days.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed all of the information we had received about the service prior to this inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority who work with and commissioned 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.
During the inspection
We spoke with 16 people who use the service and seven family members, two staff, the registered manager and two representatives of the registered provider.
We reviewed a range of records. This included five people's care records. We looked at four staff files in relation to recruitment. A variety of records relating to staff training and supervision, the delivery of care and 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 looked at records and information relating to the overall management of the service.