Zinnia Care Limited

Updated 8 September 2021

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

The inspection team consisted of an 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 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 registered manager or a senior member of staff would be available to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 22 April 2021 and ended on 09 June 2021. We visited the office location on 28 April 2021.

What we did before inspection

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.

During the inspection

We spoke with seven people who used the service and four relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with six members of staff including care staff, the deputy manager and the registered manager.

We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at three 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.

We also spoke with two local authority commissioners who are regularly in touch with the service.

Updated 8 September 2021

About the service

Zinnia Care Limited is a domiciliary care agency registered to provide personal care to people living in their own homes. At the time of this inspection, 50 people were using the service.

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, relatives and staff told us the service was not well-led. They were not always notified of staff being late and, at times, staff were missing visits. Three people told us they would not recommend the service to others. However, eight people told us the care staff were nice and they would recommend the service.

People and relatives told us if they called the office to raise concerns of late or missed visits, they received poor excuses and no changes made to improve the service. The registered manager had been away from the service for a period of time but was contactable by office staff via phone. The deputy manager and care manager were managing the service in their absence.

Staff told us they received no support from the management and if they raised concerns they were labelled as not being a ‘team player’. They felt under pressure to work additional hours and told us staff rotas were planned only a few days ahead. In addition, rotas were not always planned to allow enough time for staff to travel between visits which meant they were late arriving to some people. Staff told us the training they received from the service was not effective in preparing them for their role. We have made a recommendation about staff competency and skills.

People told us they usually had a core staff team and they built up a relationship with them. They felt safe in the presence of their regular staff. People told us all staff members were kind and caring, however due to poor organisation and rota planning, at times, they had to receive care from staff who were not familiar with their needs. People’s dignity and privacy was promoted by all staff.

Risk assessments were in place to give guidance to staff in how to mitigate risks and support people safely. People were happy about how staff administered their medicines. Staff involved health or social care professionals in people’s care when there was a need for it.

Care plans were in place to guide staff in how to meet people’s needs. Care plan reviews involved people and their relatives where appropriate as well as any professional input where there was a need.

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.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for the service at the previous premises was Good, published on 25 December 2018.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection.

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.