Willow Homecare Leeds Ltd

Willow Homecare Leeds Limited is a domiciliary care agency. The service provides personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of our inspection there were 12 people using the service. 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

The provider's systems and processes were not always effective in assessing, monitoring and mitigating risks to the health, safety and welfare of people using the service. The provider had quality monitoring processes in place, but these were not being routinely done. This placed people at risk of harm.

The provider did not always manage medicines safely. Systems in place to manage medicines were not always effective. Care records did not always include clear and up to date information about current medication and the level of support people required to take their medicines safely. This placed people at risk of harm.

Governance systems were not always in place to ensure all aspects of the service were reviewed and checked regularly. This placed people at risk of harm.

New staff received an induction program and staff had completed a range of training which gave them the skills and knowledge to care for people in their own homes. People and their relatives told us staff had the skills to support them in a safe and caring way. Staff told us they felt supported by the provider. We have made a recommendation about the safe recruitment of staff.

People were supported by staff who knew them well and were able to identify people's likes and dislikes. They said staff were kind, caring and patient. People were treated with dignity and respect. Staff cared about and had positive relationships with people. People and relatives considered the care they received to be safe.

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.

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 12 October 2020 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the date of registration and the date regulated activity started.

You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.

Enforcement

We have identified breaches in relation to assessment of people's needs, risk assessments, management of medication and the provider's systems of governance at this inspection.

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

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.