Updated 19 February 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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection team:
The inspection was conducted by one adult social care inspector and one 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 up to 24 hours per day. This included multiple supported living settings, where up to five people shared accommodation. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and their wider social support.
The service had two managers 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 short notice of the inspection visit because we needed to be sure that staff would be available to assist us to access the records.
Inspection activity started on 23 January 2019 and ended on 28 January 2019. We visited the office location on 23 January 2019 to see the managers and office staff; and to review care records, policies and procedures. We contacted relatives by telephone on 24 January 2019. We visited two people in their own home on 25 January 2019 with prior permission. We reviewed post-inspection information on 28 January 2019.
What we did:
Prior to the inspection, we reviewed any evidence we already held about the service. We asked for feedback from the local authorities who commission services and the local safeguarding teams. We also checked records held by Companies House.
We asked the service to complete a Provider Information Return. This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.
During the inspection we spoke with four people who used the service and six relatives. We spoke with staff which included the two registered managers, a service manager and two care workers. We emailed all care staff for their feedback and to ask questions about their skills and knowledge. We received seven responses. We reviewed five people's care records, four staff personnel files and records related to the safety and quality of the service.
After our inspection, we requested additional evidence to be sent to us. This was received and the information was used as part of our inspection.
We also emailed 10 external community professionals for their feedback on the service. We received three responses from a social worker, a psychologist and a speech and language therapist.