During an assessment under our new approach
About the service
Age UK Redbridge, Barking and Havering Home Support Services is a domiciliary care agency that provides care and support to people living in their own homes.
Who the service is for
This service supports older people with a range of needs who are living in their own homes. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. The service provided person-centred care to 6 people.
Key Findings (Summary)
We carried out this assessment on 23 July 2026 to 31 July 2026. This service was previously rated as good. We carried out this assessment to confirm whether the rating of good remains accurate. This report does not provide detailed information on areas where we found practice continued to meet a good standard. Instead, our findings focus on any areas where the service needs to improve or where we found exceptional practice.
The service continued to support older people and people with physical disabilities living in their own homes. Staff and managers demonstrated an understanding of safeguarding responsibilities and described robust processes for responding to concerns. The registered manager explained the service's escalation procedures and how concerns would be shared with the service’s safeguarding lead and relevant agencies. Staff received safeguarding training and understood indicators of abuse, harm and neglect. Staff knew how to follow infection control procedures and ensure people’s home environment was safe.
People received care and support following an assessment of their needs. Assessments considered people’s mobility, personal care requirements, environmental risks and equipment needs. Staff provided advice and signposting where people did not require ongoing support and supported people and their families to access other services when appropriate. Care plans contained information about people's health conditions, needs and preferences. Consent processes were in place and people were supported to make their own decisions which were respected.
There were enough staff to meet people's needs. Recruitment processes were safe and included background checks on staff. Staff completed mandatory training and received regular supervision. The management team demonstrated awareness of succession planning by supporting staff to undertake assessments when the registered manager was unavailable.
People were supported by staff who were described as kind, caring and compassionate. The registered manager told us the service aimed to provide support at an early stage, helping people maintain independence and remain living safely in their own homes. Staff considered people's cultural beliefs and encouraged people and their relatives to raise concerns or feedback. The provider promoted equality, diversity and inclusion and had clear expectations regarding respectful behaviour towards both people using the service and staff.
The provider had governance arrangements in place to oversee the quality of the service. Daily care notes, weekly reviews, incident monitoring processes and supervision arrangements were used to identify concerns and monitor people's wellbeing. The registered manager reviewed staff notes and maintained records on the organisation's systems. However, they acknowledged that spot checks had not been completed consistently in line with their policy and had identified the need to re-establish these arrangements. They also recognised the need to ensure care plans clearly evidenced review dates where updates had been completed.
The service worked with people, families and partner organisations to support positive outcomes. Staff provided advice regarding equipment, adaptations and manual handling and signposted people to occupational therapy or alternative services where appropriate.