Vow Care Services Ltd

Updated 21 July 2023

The inspection

We carried out this performance review and assessment under Section 46 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act). We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements of the regulations associated with the Act and looked at the quality of the service to provide a rating.

Unlike our standard approach to assessing performance, we did not physically visit the office of the location. This is a new approach we have introduced to reviewing and assessing performance of some care at home providers.

Inspection team

This inspection was undertaken by 1 inspector.

Service and service type

This service 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

This inspection was unannounced.

Inspection activity started on 13 June 2023 and ended on 28 June 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since registration. The provider was not asked to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. 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. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We used technology such as emails and telephone calls to engage with people using the service and staff, and electronic file sharing to enable us to review documentation. We received feedback from an external health and social care professional, 4 care workers, 2 people who received care and support, 4 relatives and the registered manager.

We reviewed records including staff training, complaints and compliment logs, accident and incident trackers and the registered manager’s governance and monitoring documents. We reviewed care plans and risk assessments for 2 people.

Updated 21 July 2023

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

At the time of the inspection, the location did not care or support for anyone with a learning disability or an autistic person. However, we assessed the care provision under Right Support, Right Care, Right Culture, as it is registered as a specialist service for this population group.

About the service

Vow Care Services Ltd is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care for 8 people at the time of the inspection. The service is registered to provide support for older people and younger adults who may live with physical disabilities, sensory impairment, mental health needs, dementia, eating disorders, learning disabilities or autism.

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

Right Support:

People were involved in planning how their care needs would be met. 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. Care workers understood the importance of providing respectful and dignified care and support centred around people’s individual needs.

Care workers had received appropriate training and had a good understanding of how to provide safe and effective care and support. Additional specialist training was provided to enhance care workers’ understanding of people’s health and wellbeing.

People were safeguarded from abuse and care workers were knowledgeable about how to support people safely. Accidents and incidents were recorded and shared with the wider care team to promote learning and reduce recurrence.

Right Care:

People had detailed risk assessments and care plans in place to enable care workers to provide safe and consistent care and support.

The registered manager operated a robust recruitment process to help ensure people received care and support from care workers who had been safely recruited and inducted into care.

People were supported by kind and compassionate care workers who knew their likes and dislikes.

Right Culture:

The registered manager had developed a quality assurance system encompassing all aspects of the service delivery. The registered manager undertook a range of routine checks to satisfy themselves the service was performing safely and in line with regulation.

The registered manager had developed an open and inclusive culture in the service. They encouraged the care team to truly promote people’s individuality, protected their rights and supported care workers to develop their skills and knowledge.

We received positive feedback from people, their relatives and staff about the registered manager. Everyone we spoke with, including external professionals, said the registered manager was approachable and responsive.

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 28/06/2019 but did not start to provide a service until 14/04/2020. This is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

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

Follow up

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