Updated 15 December 2022
The inspection
We carried out this performance review and assessment under Section 46 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act). We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements of the regulations associated with the Act and looked at the quality of the service to provide a rating.
Unlike our standard approach to assessing performance, we did not physically visit the office of the location. This is a new approach we have introduced to reviewing and assessing performance of some care at home providers. Instead of visiting the office location we use technology such as electronic file sharing and video or phone calls to engage with people using the service and staff.
Inspection team
The inspection was carried out by one inspector.
Service and service type
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.
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 a period notice for the inspection because we needed to be sure that the provider and registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection process.
Inspection activity started on 14 November 2022 and ended on 25 November.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since the service was registered and sought feedback from the local authority. We used information gathered as part of monitoring activity that took place on 31 August 2022 to help plan the inspection and inform our judgements.
Due to technical problems, the provider was not able to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR). A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.
During the inspection
This performance review and assessment was carried out without a visit to the location’s office. We used technology such as video calls to enable us to engage with people using the service and staff, and electronic file sharing to enable us to review documentation. Inspection activity took place on 14 November 2022 and ended on 25 November 2022.
During the inspection we spoke with nine people who used the service and nine relatives of people who used the service. We spoke with seven staff, this included the registered manager and nominated individual. We received feedback from five further members of care staff by email. We reviewed three people's care records and three people's medicine administration records. We looked at staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. We reviewed a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including training records and quality assurance processes.