Archived: Agincare Live-in Care

Updated 21 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

One inspector carried out this inspection.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service a short notice period of the inspection because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 15 June 2023 and ended on 23 June 2023. We visited the location’s office on 15 June 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the date it was registered. We used all this information to plan our inspection. 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 3 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 6 members of staff including the registered manager, the area manager and 4 support workers.

We reviewed a range of records. This included 2 people’s care records and medication records. We looked at 2 staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed. We looked at training data and quality assurance records.

Updated 21 July 2023

About the service

Agincare Live-in Care is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people living in their own homes. The service provides live-in care. At the time our inspection there were 3 people using the service.

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

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

At the time of the inspection, the location did not care or support for anyone with a learning disability or an autistic person. However, we assessed the care provision under Right Support, Right Care, Right Culture, as it is registered as a specialist service for this population group.

Right support: People were supported to take their medicines as prescribed. Systems and processes were in place to protect people from the risk of abuse and relatives told us their family members were safe. People had appropriate support plans in place which contained good information for staff to enable them to support people safely. Risks to people were assessed, monitored and managed. People were supported by a consistent staff team and staff had been recruited safely. Support was provided in line with current evidence-based guidance and best practice. Where needed, people were supported to maintain a balanced diet.

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.

Right care: People’s needs were thoroughly assessed so that the right care could be provided. Staff had the right knowledge and skills to carry out their roles. Staff worked well with other agencies to support the delivery of effective care. People were treated with kindness and had positive relationships with staff. Staff supported people to be involved in decisions about their care as much as possible and took the time to get to know people before commencing their care. People were treated with dignity and respect at all times.

Right culture: There was a positive and person-centred culture. People’s support plans were person-centred and reflected people as a whole, including their social histories and their likes and dislikes. The management team was approachable, open, honest, and committed to ongoing learning and improvements. Staff told us they felt appreciated and valued in their roles. Relatives told us their family members were happy with the care provided. The provider dealt with any concerns or complaints appropriately and relatives told us they felt confident to raise any issues. Robust quality assurance procedures were in place, which meant the registered manager and provider had good oversight of the service.

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 18 January 2022, and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection to assess the standard of care delivered by the service and award a rating.

Follow up

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