Archived: New Hope Care Rutland

Updated 27 June 2023

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.

As part of this inspection, we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by 1 inspector and 1 Expert by Experience. 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 homes.

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 announced. We gave short notice on 3 April 2023 to the registered manager. This was so they would be available to support the inspection process. Inspection activity started on 4 April 2023 and ended on 19 April 2023. We visited the registered office on 4 and 19 April 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We used 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 the information service to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We visited the registered office where we met with the manager and an administration assistant. The registered manager was not available to speak with us during this inspection. We spoke with 10 people and another 2 people's relatives about their experience of the care provided. We also received feedback from 3 care staff. We reviewed a range of records including 3 people's care plans and records, 3 staff recruitment files, staff training records and other records relating to the day to day management of the service.

Updated 27 June 2023

About the service

New Hope Care Rutland is a domiciliary care service providing personal care to people living in their own homes. 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. At the time of our inspection there were 20 people receiving personal care.

People's experience of using this service and what we found

Risks for people were not consistently assessed and planned for. There was a lack of information about how risks associated with people's needs might impact on the care being provided. Staff did not always respond to new risks or changes in people's needs in a timely manner.

The registered manager did not consistently have good oversight of the service. Quality checks took place, but these did not always identify where improvements were needed. The provider's own checks had not identified the shortfalls we found in risk management, medicine administration records and staff training.

Staff were recruited in line with the provider's policy, but improvement was needed to ensure they were sufficiently skilled and knowledgeable to meet people's individual needs. Staff turnover was high and some people felt this had an impact on the consistency of their care. People and relatives told us they received their medicines safely but staff did not always complete medicine administration records accurately. Staff used personal protective equipment effectively and safely. Staff understood how to protect people from abuse.

The registered manager had not always ensured we (CQC) were always informed about incidents we should be legally told about, although they had escalated incidents of concern to other safeguarding authorities.

People were not formally consulted or engaged in the development of the service. However, people and relatives felt the deputy manager was approachable and was committed to meeting people's needs.

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; overall the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 6 July 2022).

Why we inspected

We received concerns in relation to staff response to changes in people's care needs. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe and well-led only. For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has remained requires improvement based on the findings of this inspection.

We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the safe and well-led sections of this report. You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for New Hope Care Rutland on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Enforcement and Recommendations

We have identified breaches in relation to safe care and treatment and good governance at this inspection. You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.

We have made a recommendation that the provider considers the current MCA legal framework where people experience fluctuating mental capacity.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.