Head Office

Head Office is a domiciliary care agency which provides personal care to people living in their own homes. The service currently supports 19 people in the community. Not everyone who used the service received personal care. 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. At the time of our inspection there were seven people using the service who were in receipt of the regulated activity of personal care.

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

People told us they were supported by staff who were kind and caring and knew them well. People and their relatives told us the service was well managed and spoke highly of the registered manager.

People were not always protected by safe recruitment practices and systems operated by the provider had failed to identify shortfalls we found during this inspection. We have made recommendations in relation to management of risk, medicines, training, accessibility of information and end of life care.

Whilst the provider was not fully aware of all the concerns we identified, they were aware of the need to develop systems and processes to drive improvements and were committed to making those changes

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. Safeguarding systems were established and the provider had clear policies and procedures in relation to safeguarding adults.

People’s needs were assessed and care plans contained key information to inform and guide staff on how best to support each person. Staff seemed to know people well and understood how to communicate effectively with people and spoke about people in a dignified and respectful way.

Staff spoke positively about the leadership of the service and told us they felt listened to, appreciated and supported in their role.

The provider was keen to put processes in place to address any areas of concern or improve practice.

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 22 February 2021 and this is the first rated inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection for a newly registered service.

Enforcement and Recommendations

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 and will take further action if needed.

We have identified breaches in relation to recruitment and governance at this inspection. We have also made recommendations in relation to the management of risk, medicines, training, accessibility of information and end of life care.

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 from 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 continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.