De Vere Care Partnership

Updated 12 October 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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector and two Experts by Experience, who made phone calls to people and relatives. 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

De Vere Care Partnership is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.

Registered manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

The inspection was announced. We gave the service 24 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. Inspection activity started on 5 September 2022, when we visited the provider’s office, and ended on 20 September 2022.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed the information we already held about the service. This included the last inspection report and notifications. A notification is information about important events, which the provider is required to tell us about by law. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make.

We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

During the inspection, we spoke with the registered manager, the managing director who was responsible for the service, the deputy manager, the quality and compliance manager and seven care staff.

We reviewed documents and records that related to people’s care and the management of the service. We reviewed 12 people's care plans, which included risk assessments. We looked at other documents and records, such as those for medicine management and infection control. We spoke with 11 people and 17 relatives, for their feedback about the service.

Updated 12 October 2022

About the service

De Vere Care Partnership is a domiciliary care agency located in the London Borough of Redbridge. It is registered to provide personal care to people in their own homes across a number of boroughs in London.

The service provides support to older people, some of whom may have dementia, people with physical disabilities and people with learning disabilities. At the time of our inspection, there were approximately 330 people using the service.

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

Systems were in place to help protect people from the risk of abuse. Staff understood safeguarding from abuse procedures. Risks assessments ensured potential risks to people were identified and managed. Guidance around risks was in place for staff to follow and keep people safe.

Staff were recruited appropriately and there were enough staff in the service to meet people's needs. People and relatives told us staff were punctual when attending calls to their homes and completed their required tasks. Records confirmed this. However, the provider had identified technical issues with their call monitoring system and staff did not always log their calls. These issues were being addressed by the provider.

Staff supported people with medicines and their competency was assessed to check they did so safely. Staff had the necessary skills and training to provide care to people in their own homes.

There was a procedures for reporting incidents and accidents to review and learn lessons. We made a recommendation for the provider to review their reporting forms for incidents because they were used by the previous provider and were out of date.

Staff followed infection control procedures and people were protected from the risk of infections, such as COVID-19.

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's consent was sought when care was provided to them and they were given choices to ensure they had control of their care.

Assessments of people’s needs were completed before they started using the service. Staff supported people to access health care services and supported them to eat and drink the food they preferred. Staff told us they were supported by the registered manager and received supervision to discuss their performance.

People and relatives told us staff were respectful, caring and supported them to maintain their independence. People’s privacy, dignity, human rights and equality and diversity characteristics were respected. People and relatives were able to express their views about the care provided.

Care plans recorded people’s needs and preferences and they received person-centred care. People’s communication needs and preferences were understood by staff. There was a procedure for complaints and the management team responded to them appropriately. People receiving end of life care and support, had their wishes respected.

The provider promoted a positive culture and service that was person-centred. People, relatives and staff told us the service was well-led. Staff and managers were aware of their responsibilities. There were quality assurance systems in place for the provider to continuously improve the service and learn lessons when things went wrong.

The provider gathered feedback from people and relatives. The service worked in partnership with other organisations to benefit people using the service and support staff.

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

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 12 April 2019 and this is the first inspection. The last rating for the service under the previous provider was Good, published on 24 January 2019.

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted by a review of information we held about the service.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.