Archived: Bridge Reach Domiciliary Agency

Below is a summary of what we found. The summary describes what we observed, the records we looked at and what people who used the service, their relatives and the staff told us.

If you want to see the evidence that supports our summary please read the full report.

Is the service safe?

People told us that they felt their rights and dignity were respected.

Systems were in place to make sure that managers and staff learn from events such as accidents, incidents and complaints. This reduces the risks to people and helps the service to continually improve.

People said they were safe. One person said, 'I feel very safe here. In an emergency, I can call the police. If I have an accident/incident I can also call the manager for help'. People's homes we visited were clean and hygienic.

Is the service effective?

There was an advocacy service available if people needed it, this meant that when required people could access additional support.

People's health and care needs were assessed with them, and they were involved in writing their plans of care. Specialist mobility and equipment needs had been identified in care plans where required.

The premises had been sensitively adapted to meet the needs of people with physical and visual impairments.

Is the service caring?

People were supported by kind and attentive staff. We saw that care workers showed patience and gave encouragement when supporting people

People who used the service, their relatives, friends and other professionals involved with the service completed an annual satisfaction survey. The result stated that people were generally happy with the service provided.

People's preferences, interests, aspirations and diverse needs had been recorded and care and support had been provided in accordance with people's wishes.

Is the service responsive?

People completed a range of activities in and outside the service regularly.

People knew how to make a complaint if they were unhappy. For example, one person who used the service said, 'If I have any concerns I will speak with the manager and if it is about the manager, I will speak with my care manager'. People can therefore be assured that complaints would be investigated and action is taken as necessary.

Is the service well-led?

The service has a quality assurance system, records seen by us showed that identified shortfalls were addressed promptly. As a result the quality of the service was continuingly improving.

Staff told us they were clear about their roles and responsibilities. Staff had a good understanding of the ethos of the agency and quality assurance processes were in place. This helped to ensure that people received a good quality service at all times.

We saw that care records were up to date and reviewed regularly. They showed clearly the goals and progress that individual people were making. People were also supported to have their long term health needs monitored. They said their support needs were met and they had confidence in the staff members who visited them. Comments from the person we spoke with on the telephone included, 'It is nice and alright here' and 'The staff are good and I can talk to them'.

Staff had not received appropriate professional development. Mandatory and specialised training for all staff were not up to date. Annual appraisals were not carried out.

The agency had a number of systems in place to make sure that services were assessed and they monitored their delivery of care and support. The agency had established procedures in place for reviewing people's care and support needs at regular intervals.

We saw that Bridge Reach Domiciliary Agency had a complaints policy and procedure. The procedure was in the service user's handbook given to people who used the service when they started with the agency.

People told us care workers usually arrived around the same time each day. One person told us, "Staff stayed long enough to do everything they needed to do". All the people we spoke with said the carers were friendly and polite.

Records showed the agency had systems in place to monitor the care provided and manage identified risks. The agency regularly reviewed the care provided to people.

Staff we spoke with knew how to keep people safe and what to do if they had any concerns. One person said, 'I feel safe because staff made me feel safe'. Staff said they would have no hesitation reporting concerns or poor practice to the manager.

All the records and documents we requested to see were made available to us.