Ivy Homecare Limited

Updated 22 July 2023

The inspection

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

The inspection team comprised of 1 inspector 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.

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 inspection there was a registered manager in post who was also the provider. For the purposes of this report, we will refer to them as the provider.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure the provider would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 29 June 2023 and ended on 10 July 2023. We visited the office location on 29 June 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed the information we had received about the service, including previous inspection reports and notifications. Notifications are information about specific important events the service is legally required to send to CQC.

The provider was not asked to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

During the inspection

We spoke with 4 people and 5 relatives of people who use the service about their experience of the care received. We spoke with 5 members of staff including the provider who was also the nominated individual. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider. We also spoke with or received feedback from 4 external professionals who work with the service.

We reviewed a range of records. This included 4 people's care records and medication records. We looked at 3 staff recruitment, training and supervision files.

We also reviewed records relating to the overall management of the service. We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence we found.

Updated 22 July 2023

About the service

Ivy Homecare Limited provides personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of inspection 10 adults were older adults were receiving a regulated activity.

Not everyone who used the service received personal care. The Care Quality Commission (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

Since the last inspection there had been a number of improvements made to the service. These improvements had resulted in safer, effective and person-centred care being provided to people being supported by Ivy Homecare Limited.

People and relatives told us they felt safe and were happy with the care. Effective systems and processes to safeguard people from the risk of abuse had been introduced and were followed.

Care plans and risk assessments were in place which provided information to staff on how to safely provide care and support to people. However, we identified with some risk assessments, it was not always clear what action staff should take if concerns were noted. The provider took immediate action to address this. Where people required support with medicines this was done safely.

Recruitment practices were effective, and people and relatives told us there were enough staff to meet the needs of the people using the service.

People's needs were assessed prior to care being commenced to help ensure they could be provided with the care they required.

People were supported to access appropriate healthcare services when required. Staff had received appropriate training and support to enable them to carry out their role safely. Staff felt well supported by the provider.

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 told us they were treated well by staff, who were kind and caring and treated them with dignity and respect. People and where appropriate those who were important to them were involved in decisions about their care. There was a person-centred culture within the service.

Since the last inspection, systems and processes had been introduced and were followed to help ensure any complaints received were investigated, acted on and responded to in a timely way. Full consideration had been given to people’s communication needs.

People and their relatives told us the service was well-led and said they would recommend this service to others.

Effective quality assurance systems had been developed and implemented to continually assess, monitor and improve the quality of care people received.

The provider was open and transparent and demonstrated they understood their regulatory responsibilities. The provider kept in regular contact with people, checking if they were happy with the service they received and if any changes were needed. The service worked well with other partners, organisations and commissioners.

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

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was inadequate (published 4 October 2022) and there were multiple breaches of regulations identified. The service was placed in special measures and conditions were imposed on the providers registration.

During this inspection the provider demonstrated that improvements have been made. The service is no longer rated as inadequate overall or in any of the key questions. Therefore, this service is no longer in Special Measures.

Why we inspected

This inspection was carried out to follow up on action we told the provider to take at the last inspection.

Follow up

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