Archived: Genuine Carers - Cherwell

Genuine Carers Cherwell is a domiciliary care agency providing care to people in their own homes in the Cherwell area in North Oxfordshire. At the time of our inspection 16 people were receiving the regulated activity of personal care from the service.

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

People were not always protected from risks of unsafe recruitment as the evidence of staff checks and conduct were not sought prior to the staff working with adults at risk. The service had systems to report and investigate concerns. However, risk assessments did not always identify how potential risks should be managed to reduce the likelihood of people experiencing harm.

There was a registered manager appointed who was supported by a deputy and the director.

The provider's quality assurance processes were not effective and had not identified some of the concerns we found during our inspection. However, the registered manager was open and transparent and recognised that some of the quality assurance system needed to be strengthened and demonstrated a commitment to continuously improve the service for the people it supported.

Staff understood the risks to people and delivered safe care in accordance with people's support plans and knew how to report any suspicions concerning abuse.

Staff were knowledgeable about types and signs of abuse, and the actions they were required to take to escalate any concerns. People told us there were enough staff to keep people safe, although some concerns were raised by relatives regarding late visits.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff provided them with care in the least restrictive way possible and acted in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service promoted this practice.

People told us they were supported by caring and compassionate staff. Staff respected people's privacy, dignity and their individual needs. People felt the support they had met their needs. Staff knew people's needs well and were passionate about ensuring people felt valued and cared for.

People's individual communication needs were known to staff and staff were able to give us examples of how they adjusted communication methods where required.

People, their relatives and staff spoke highly of the registered manager; they found them approachable and supportive. There was a positive workplace culture and the team worked well in partnership with other agencies and the local social and health professionals. We received positive feedback from three professionals who praised the service's caring approach and the care provided to people.

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 02 July 2021 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection as this new service had been registered since 2020

Enforcement

We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to monitor the service to keep people safe and to hold providers to account where it is necessary for us to do so.

We have identified breaches in relation to recruitment procedures and the quality of safety and governance systems 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 for 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 return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.