Home Instead Leigh

Updated 5 October 2021

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

The inspection was carried out by one inspector and an 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 houses and flats.

The service had a manager 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 the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 15 September 2021 and ended on 16 September 2021. We visited the office location on 15 and 16 September 2021.

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.

During the inspection-

We spoke with one person who used the service and four relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with seven members of staff including the, registered manager, three care workers, two office staff and the nominated individual. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records and medication records. We looked at three 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.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records.

Updated 5 October 2021

About the service

Home Instead Leigh is a domiciliary care agency which provides personal care to younger adults and people over the age of 65 within Leigh and the surrounding areas. On the Dot Care Ltd is a franchise of the national provider Home Instead Senior Care UK Limited, trading as Home Instead Leigh. At the time of the inspection eight people were receiving the regulated activity of personal care.

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

Staff had awareness of safeguarding and knew how to raise concerns. Steps were taken to minimise risks where possible. Risks to people's health and well-being were identified and monitored. Guidance was in place for staff on how to support people with these risks.

People’s needs were comprehensively assessed before starting with the service; people and their relatives had been involved in the care planning process. Staff had developed supportive relationships with people and knew them well; people received person-centred care as a result. Staff supported some people to access healthcare professionals when required and supported some people to manage their medicines safely.

Staff were competent and had the skills and knowledge to enable them to support people safely and effectively. Staff received the training and support they needed to carry out their roles effectively and received regular supervisions, competency checks and appraisals; staff we spoke with confirmed this. Systems were in place to recruit staff safely.

Staff promoted people's independence and treated them with dignity and respect. People were involved in making decisions about their care and involved in reviews to ensure their care plans met their needs and supported them to achieve outcomes. Staff supported people to access the community. People and their relatives were complimentary about the staff and their caring attitude.

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.

People knew how to make a complaint. There was an effective complaints process in place to deal with any complaints that might be raised in the future. The registered manager and staff were committed to providing high quality care and support for people.

The service had an open and supportive culture. Systems were in place to monitor the quality and safety of care delivered. There was evidence of improvement and learning from any actions identified.

The provider and registered manager followed governance systems which provided effective oversight and monitoring of the service. These governance systems and processes were robust and identified areas of the service where improvements were needed.

The registered manager completed a range of audits to ensure the service provided to people was safe and effective and to drive improvements in the service.

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 26 June 2020 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the date of registration.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.