Updated 22 March 2019
The inspection:
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, 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 carried out by two inspectors 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. It provides a service to younger and older adults, people living with dementia, mental health and learning disabilities.
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:
This inspection took place on 28,29 and 30 January 2019 and was announced. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because it is small and the manager is often out of the office supporting staff or providing care. We needed to be sure that they would be in.
What we did:
Inspection site visit activity started on 28 January 2019 when we undertook telephone calls to people and their relatives. We visited the office location on 29 January 2019 to see the manager and office staff; and to review care records and policies and procedures. The inspection ended on 30 January 2019 when we made telephone calls to staff.
When planning our inspection, we looked at information we held about the service. This included notifications about significant incidents in the service which the provider is required to inform us about by law. The provider had completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.
We spoke with three people and five relatives by telephone. We also visited two people in their own homes and met with one relative. We also spoke with the provider who was also the registered manager and spoke with five care staff.
We reviewed four people's care records, two staff recruitment and training files and other records pertaining to the day to day management of the service including the provider's quality assurance systems.
We requested additional evidence to be sent to us after our inspection This was received and the information was used as part of our inspection.