Updated 7 January 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 Care Act 2014.
Inspection Team
The inspection was carried out by one inspector who visited the service and an Expert by Experience who made telephone calls to people who used the service. 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 provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection. Inspection activity started on 6 December 2021 and ended on 14 December 2021. We visited the office location on 8 December 2021.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since it registered with CQC and sought feedback from commissioners of the service including the local authority. 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 this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records. We looked at staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision and a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including checks on the quality of care provided. We spoke with the Nominated Individual, Registered Manager and the Quality Compliance Manager. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider
After the inspection
We continued to seek clarification from the registered manager and provider to validate evidence found. The Expert by Experience contacted 10 people and their relatives by telephone to gather feedback of their experiences of the service. The inspector telephoned five members of care staff to obtain their views of the service.