We carried out a review of the data available to us about Aid With Care Limited 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 Aid With Care Limited, you can give feedback on this service.
Kingspark Business Centre is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people living in their own homes. At the time of our inspection 43 older people were receiving personal care at home from this provider.
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.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People using the service, their relatives and community social care professionals all told us they were satisfied with the standard of care and support provided by this home care agency. For example, one relative said, “I have been blown away with the consistently excellent care my [family member] gets from this agency.” While a second relative added, “I am very impressed and happy with the service we received. I know my [family member] is in safe hands.”
People were kept safe and protected against the risk of avoidable harm and abuse. People received consistently good-quality and safe care from the same group of staff who were familiar with their needs and preferences. The fitness and suitability of staff to work in adult social care had been thoroughly assessed as part of the providers robust recruitment procedures. Staff followed current best practice guidelines regarding the prevention and control of infection, including those associated with COVID-19. The provider had measures in place to mitigate the risks associated with COVID-19 related staff workforce pressures. Medicines were well-organised and people received their prescribed medicines as and when they should.
Staff who had the right mix of knowledge, skills and support to deliver good-quality, safe care. Assessments of people’s support needs and wishes were carried out before they started receiving any care at home support from this agency. Where staff were responsible for assisting people to eat and drink, people’s dietary needs and wishes were met. People were supported to stay healthy and well, and to access relevant community health and social care services as and when required. 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.
People were treated equally and had their human rights and diversity respected, including their cultural and spiritual needs and wishes. Staff treated people with dignity and upheld their right to privacy. People typically described staff as “polite” and “kind”. People were encouraged and supported to maintain their independent living skills and do as much for themselves as they were willing and capable of doing so safely.
People's care plans were person-centred, which helped staff provide them with the individualised care at home they needed. Staff ensured they communicated and shared information with people in a way they could easily understand. People were encouraged to make decisions about the care and support they received at home and staff respected their informed choices. Where appropriate, people's end of life wishes and contacts were known and recorded for staff to refer to.
People were all complimentary about the way the office-based managers ran the service, and how approachable they were. The managers promoted an open and inclusive culture which sought the views of people, their relatives and staff. The provider worked in close partnership with other health and social care professionals and agencies to plan and deliver people's packages of care at home.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection and update
The last rating for this service was good (published 10 April 2020).
Why we inspected
The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about staff sometimes being late for their scheduled visits. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.
We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from this concern. Please see the relevant safe key question section of this full report.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect. If we receive any concerning information, we may inspect sooner.
Kingspark Business Centre (also known as Aid with Care Limited) is a domiciliary care agency providing care and support to people living in their own homes in the community. At the time of our inspection the service was supporting 14 people. The majority of people supported by the service are older people living with dementia or other conditions associated with ageing. The service also provides reablement support to people to enable them to regain skills following a hospital stay.
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
The care and support provided to people was person centred. People’s care plans and risk assessments included information about their preferred care and support needs and preferences. Guidance for staff on ensuring that people were supported safely and in accordance with their wishes was included in people’s care records.
Staff had received training about safeguarding and knew how to respond to and report any allegation or suspicion of harm or abuse. They understood the importance of reporting concerns immediately.
The service’s recruitment procedures were designed to ensure that staff were suitable for the work they would be undertaking. New staff members were not assigned work until satisfactory references and criminal records disclosures had been received.
New staff had received an induction to the service before starting work. Staff also received supervision sessions to support them in carrying out their roles. Spot checks of staff practice and competency had taken place.
People and their family members were involved in decisions about their care. They told us they had been involved in agreeing people's care plans and had participated in reviews of the care and support provided to them. People and family members said that staff asked people for their consent to carry out care and support tasks.
Information about people’s religious, cultural and communication needs was included in their care plans. People had been matched with staff who were knowledgeable about their needs and preferences.
People were supported to have 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.
People had been asked about their views of the care and support that they received. The provider had acted to address concerns arising from these checks.
The provider had procedures to manage and respond to complaints and concerns. People and family members were aware of the service’s complaints procedure and knew how to make a complaint if they needed to.
The provider undertook a range of audits to check on the quality of care provided. Actions had been taken to address any concerns.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection:
This was the first inspection of this newly registered service.
Why we inspected:
This was a planned inspection.
Follow up:
We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to inspect as part of our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.