During an assessment under our new approach
Date of Assessment: 29 May to 19 June 2025. The inspection started remotely, and a site visit took place on 17 June 2025. ‘Sunderland’ is a care at home service providing support to older people and younger adults. At the time of inspection there were 3 people receiving the regulated activity of personal care. This was the first rated inspection of the service. A registered manager was in place, who was also the nominated individual. The nominated individual and registered manager were registered with the Commission and were legally responsible for ensuring the service was compliant with legal and regulatory requirements.
Staff spoke very positively about working at the service and the people they cared for. Staff knew the care and support needs of people they supported, but improvements were needed to care records to reflect the person-centred care provided by staff. People received effective care and were supported to ensure their health care needs were met. People were treated with kindness and compassion. Staff protected their privacy and dignity. People were supported to take risks to improve their quality of life. Systems were in place to protect people and ensure their safety. However, some improvements were needed to medicine management to ensure they were managed safely. There were enough staff with the necessary skills, qualifications and experience. The service had a good learning culture and people could raise concerns.
The provider investigated incidents thoroughly. Staff received training and regular appraisals to maintain high-quality care. Whilst the majority of the systems in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service were effective, some improvements were required to the oversight of medicines and care records. Staff and leaders demonstrated a listening culture and were open to learning and improvements.