Updated 1 August 2019
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
This inspection was undertaken by one inspector.
Service and service type
This service provides care and support to people living in specialist ‘extra care’ housing. Extra care housing is purpose-built or adapted single household accommodation in a shared site or building. The accommodation is bought and is the occupant’s own home. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for extra care housing; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support service.
The service had recently had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission however they had left and a new manager was in the process of being recruited. A registered manager 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 24 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because we needed to make arrangements to meet people to seek their feedback.
What we did before the 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.
We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with two people who used the service about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with seven members of staff including the duty manager, the quality assurance officer, the area support manager, the area manager and care workers.
We reviewed a range of records. This included two people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at two 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.
Inspection site visit activity started on 12 June 2019 and ended on 5 July 2019. It included a visit to the provider’s office location on 12 June 2019 to meet with the provider and staff and to review care plans and other records. In the following days we attempted contact with additional staff and relatives of people who used the service, however we received no response.
After the inspection
We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records. We left our contact details for any further people, relatives or staff who wished to share their experiences however no one got in touch.