Oaktree Homecare Services Limited

Updated 23 July 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 undertaken by two inspectors and an Expert by experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of service.

Service and service type

Oaktree Homecare Services Limited is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes.

Registered Manager

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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.

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

Notice of inspection

We carried out the inspection visit on 8 June 2022. It was announced. We told the provider two days before our visit that we would be coming. We did this because the registered manager is sometimes out of the office supporting staff or visiting people who use the service. We needed to be sure that they would be available at their office.

What we did before inspection

We reviewed the information we held about the home which included statutory notifications and safeguarding alerts The agency was not asked to complete the Provider Information Return (PIR). A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

During the inspection

We went to the service's office and spoke with the registered manager and other members of the management and office staff. We also spoke with three care workers.

We looked at seven care records and three staff records. We also looked at training and supervision records and various documents relating to the management of the service.

After the inspection visit, we spoke with seven people who used the service and four of their relatives. We received feedback from one health and social care professional who worked with the service.

Updated 23 July 2022

Oaktree Homecare Services Limited is a domiciliary care agency that provides care and support to people in their own home. At the time of this inspection, 75 people were 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

We identified issues with the management of the service. We found there were insufficient risk assessments in place to provide safe guidance to staff when providing care. Care plans lacked personalised information, and we found gaps in records to show that complaints were dealt with in line with best practice.

The service had grown significantly since the last inspection and we were concerned that there was insufficient management oversight and input to ensure quality care was provided. We found contradictory information on some care plans in relation to mental capacity assessments, and mobility issues. We found some complaints documentation had not been completed to evidence actions taken, although people told us complaints were dealt with.

The management team knew people’s needs and we found staff to be well-informed, so this mitigated against some of the concerns identified.

The service had some systems in place to monitor and improve the quality and safety of the service provided. These included spot checks and reviews, although review documentation was not always fully completed.

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; but the completed documentation did not always evidence this practice.

People and their relatives found the care staff kind and caring, and skilled to do their job. People were treated with dignity and respect.

People and their relatives told us they felt safe. Staff had completed safeguarding training and understood their role in identifying and reporting any concerns of potential abuse or poor practice.

Staff recruitment was safe, and people told us they usually had a consistent team of care staff.

Staff told us they enjoyed working for the service and received support and training to carry out their role. Records evidenced that supervision and training took place.

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

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about the consistency and quality of the service. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.

Rating at last inspection

At the last inspection we rated this service good (18 December 2020).

Enforcement and Recommendations

We have identified breaches in relation to insufficient risk assessments and the governance of the service.

Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information, we may inspect sooner.