Archived: First Class Care Team Limited

Is the service caring?

Is the service responsive?

Is the service safe?

Is the service effective?

Is the service well led?

Below is a summary of what we found. The summary is based on our observations during the inspection, discussions with two of the four people using the service, one of the two care staff supporting them and looking at four people's care records. If you wish to see the evidence supporting our summary please read the full report.

Is the service Safe ?

The service is not safe, as although people who used the service told us that they felt safe measures were not in place to ensure the history of workers or their on going work practise. One person told us, "I feel safe and well cared for" but there was nothing on record as to how the person's needs were being met. Safeguarding procedures were in place and staff understood their role in safeguarding the people they supported. Staff were aware of the provider's whistleblowing policy.

People's independence, rights and choices were not protected because the provider had no procedures in place to gain people's consent to the care and support they received. There was no evidence of people being monitored or assessed to ensure they were able to give consent so the provider had not acted in people's best interests nor met legal requirements.

There was little in the way of recorded risk assessment or how to minimise any identified risks for people.

Systems were not in place to ensure that the manager and staff learned from events such as accidents and incidents, complaints and checks made on the service. This put people at risk.

Is the service Effective ?

The service is not effective as people's care needs were assessed with them but not recorded so not used as information for staff to work to, to support the people. Both people we spoke with told us they were involved in their care planning initially. But we saw no evidence of care plans in place to lead the support required and no evidence of them being monitored or updated.

The service is caring as people were supported by care staff that were kind and caring. We saw that care staff gave people encouragement and respected their privacy and dignity. One person told us, "They help me in any way I want". However, people's preferences, interests and diverse needs had not been recorded and so care and support was not necessarily being provided in accordance with people's wishes.

Is the service Reactive ?

The service is reactive as people had the opportunity to plan and engage in a range of different activities each day. People told us that the care staff did whatever they asked of them at their visits. Both people spoken with felt they would be able to address any issues quickly by speaking to the manager.

Where care staff had noticed people's changing needs, they told us the care would reflect this but as no written care plans were in place this was difficult to evidence.

Is the service Well Led ?

The service was not well led as the provider had no quality assurance and risk management systems in place. No care plans or risk assessments were in place to lead staff to fulfil the needs of the people. Recruitment was not being carried out safely, the disclosure and barring check (DBS) for one staff member had not been carried out until three months after they had started work. There were no no references sought for staff.

The provider had not sought the views of people who used the service this meant that the service was not using the process to move forward and learn from examples of current practise.

Staff told us they were clear about their roles and responsibilities and understood the quality assurance and risk management systems. This helped to ensure that people received a good quality of care. Staff told us they felt supported by their manager.

The registered manager showed a good awareness of how to promote and maintain dignity and privacy and this was reflected in comments from relatives. The relative of one of the people using the service told us 'Oh yes definitely, they are treated with respect'.

We found that people were given clear information about the service when they first made contact and that assessments took place to establish if the service was able to meet their needs. People using the service and their relatives were made aware from the outset of the process for raising concerns and complaints and this was clearly explained in the Service Users' Guide.

The registered manager had undertaken training in safeguarding and showed a good understanding of how to recruit, train and monitor the work of staff to ensure that the care they provide was safe and respectful. There were systems in place to ensure that the quality of the service is monitored and that problems are addressed as soon as they arose.