Caring Hands Leicester Ltd

Updated 1 September 2023

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 2008.

Inspection team

This inspection was carried out by 1 inspector.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes.

Registered manager

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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. At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 1 days’ notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure that the registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection. We also gave time for the registered manager to send us inspection information, so we did not have to spend an extended amount of time in the office of the service.

Inspection activity started on 8 June 2023 and ended 9 June 2023. We visited the office location on 8 June 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service and we sought feedback from the local authority.

During the inspection we spoke with 2 people who used the service about their experience of the care provided and 9 relatives. We spoke with 3 care staff. the registered manager, the compliance manager and the operations manager. We reviewed a range of records. This included 4 care records. We looked at 4 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 also reviewed.

We continued to seek clarification from the registered manager to validate evidence found, which was sent to us.

Updated 1 September 2023

Caring Hands Leicester Ltd is a domiciliary care agency, providing personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of inspection, 60 people were using the service. 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.

Timely calls were not always in place to provide people with the personal care they needed.

Safe recruitment practices were not fully in place to ensure only suitable staff worked at the service.

People and their relatives were not always satisfied with the management of the agency. They said they always received a polite and reassuring response to their queries, but this was not always backed by effective action being taken. Effective quality assurance systems were not always in place to ensure people were provided with a quality service.

Details of how to reduce risks to people's safety were included in people's care plans. Care plans reflected people’s individual needs. Enough staff were employed to meet people's needs. People and relatives said safe care was provided, with people protected against abuse, neglect and discrimination.

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 and their relatives were very satisfied with the personal care that staff provided. They said they were treated with respect and dignity and staff had a caring and friendly approach to them. They said they had very good relationships with staff. Staff respected people's privacy and encouraged them to maintain their independence and do as much for themselves as they wanted to.

People and relatives were aware of how to approach the registered manager to raise concerns or complaints. The registered manager understood their responsibilities and worked in an open and transparent way.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about the safety of people's care in relation to moving and handling practice. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks. We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the Safe and Well Led sections of this full report.

The overall rating for the service has remained requires improvement based on the findings of this inspection.

Rating at last inspection

This is the third inspection for the service. The last inspection was in February 2019 when the service was rated requires improvement.

Follow up

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