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Innovative Start Ltd

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

Suite 17, Midshires House, Midshires Business Park, Smeaton Close, Aylesbury, HP19 8HL 07769 223428

Provided and run by:
Innovative Start Limited

All Inspections

During an assessment under our new approach

Date of Assessment: 15th April 2026 to 18th May 2026.

Innovative Start Ltd is a domiciliary care agency registered to provide personal care. At the time of the assessment, 30 people were receiving care to support them to live independently in their own homes.

At our previous inspection, we identified breaches of regulations relating to safe care and treatment, safeguarding, governance, failure to notify the CQC of notifiable events, and safe staffing and recruitment. We carried out this inspection to check whether improvements had been made. This inspection found that sufficient improvements have now been achieved, and the service is no longer in breach of these regulations.

There was a positive and person-centred culture within the service. People were treated with dignity and respect, and their choices, independence, and wellbeing were actively promoted. Care was delivered in partnership with people, their families, and relevant health and social care professionals to ensure coordinated and consistent support. The service met the principles of Right support, right care, right culture, people were supported in a way that recognised them as individuals, respected their rights, and promoted independence.

Staff were recruited safely and there were enough staff to meet people’s needs. They completed a structured induction, ongoing training, and received regular supervision to support them in their roles. Staff understood their responsibilities in relation to safeguarding and were confident in identifying and reporting concerns. The registered manager worked appropriately with external agencies when safeguarding issues arose.

People were supported safely. Risks were assessed and managed, and care plans were regularly reviewed to reflect people’s changing needs. Medicines were managed safely, and people were supported to access healthcare professionals when required. Staff were able to evidence an understanding of infection prevention and control and had access to appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE).

The provider promoted a culture of learning and continuous improvement. Incidents and feedback were reviewed to identify learning and drive improvement. People and their relatives were encouraged to raise concerns and provide feedback about the service.

Effective governance systems were in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service. The management team had oversight of care delivery and worked collaboratively with staff, families, and professionals to achieve positive outcomes. There was a strong sense of teamwork, and staff felt supported to deliver person-centred care.

During an assessment under our new approach

Date of assessment: 18 December 2024 to 18 January 2025. Innovative Start Ltd is registered to provide support with personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of assessment, the service supported 49 people.

The assessment was carried out following on-going concerns since our first assessment of the service. The previous assessment was not rated, as we did not assess enough quality statements. However, at that time we found four breaches of the legal regulations in relation to safeguarding, safe care and treatment, governance and informing CQC of events they were required to notify to us.

We undertook this assessment to check the provider had followed the action plan they completed after the previous inspection and to confirm they now met legal requirements. At this comprehensive assessment, we found the provider remained in breach of four legal regulations. In addition, we found two new breaches in relation to staffing and recruitment.

People were not safeguarded from potential abuse and risks were not always identified and mitigated.

Safe medicine practices were not promoted. Safe recruitment practice was not always followed and staff did not receive suitable support.

Records were not always accurate or well-maintained. Governance systems had not identified or addressed areas for improvement. The service failed to notify us of incidents which they are required to.

In instances where CQC has decided to take civil or criminal enforcement action against a provider, we will publish this information on our website after any representations and/or appeals have been concluded.

This service is being placed in special measures. The purpose of special measures is to ensure services providing inadequate care make significant improvements. Special measures provide a framework within which we use our enforcement powers in response to inadequate care and provide a timeframe within which providers must improve the quality of care they provide.

During an assessment under our new approach

Date of assessment 24 April 2024 to 14 May 2024.

We carried out this responsive assessment to consider potential risks in relation to governance of the service, risk management and recruitment.

We found four breaches of the legal regulations in relation to safeguarding, safe care and treatment, governance and informing the Commission of certain events.



The service did not consistently protect people from abuse and improper treatment. The service did not always assess risks to people's health and safety or mitigate them where identified. Governance systems and audits were not effective in identifying or addressing areas for improvement. The service did not always notify the Commission of events they were legally required to do so.



However, there were enough staff to ensure people’s safety and meet their needs. People were supported to have choice and control and could give feedback on their care. People were treated with kindness, compassion and respect. People’s privacy and dignity were upheld by staff who responded promptly to signs of discomfort, pain or distress.

We have not previously rated this service. This assessment did not cover all parts of our Single Assessment Framework, therefore we have only updated scores and ratings for those areas which we have assessed. We will carry out future assessments to cover other parts of the Framework and will update our website with our findings.

We have asked the provider for an action plan in response to the concerns found at this assessment.