We carried out a review of the data available to us about Stockwellcare Support Services on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Stockwellcare Support Services, you can give feedback on this service.
Stockwellcare Support Services is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people living in their own homes. At the time of our inspection 55 older people were receiving personal care at home from this provider. 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
People receiving a home care service, their relatives and community health and social care professionals were positive about the standard of care provided by Stockwellcare Support Services. People using the service and those working with and for the provider also agreed the service had improved in the last 6 months. A relative told us, “I love everything about the agency. The company is now run very well and my loved ones needs are fully met.” A social care professional added, “My colleague and I recently visited the provider and we found they had made great improvements since their last CQC inspection. Currently we have no issues with this provider and we are pleased with the improvement they have made.”
At our last inspection we found the provider had failed to ensure; risk assessments and management plans were sufficiently detailed, staff wore personal protective equipment (PPE), call visits were well-coordinated, staff were suitably trained, and the service was well-led.
At this inspection we found enough improvements had been made. People had up to date care plans that contained detailed risk assessments and management plans to help staff keep them safe. Staff followed current best practice guidelines regarding the prevention and control of infection including, wearing appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) as and when required. People received consistently safe, good-quality personal care from the same group of staff who were familiar with their needs and who now arrived on time for their scheduled call visits.
Staff received the right levels of training and support to deliver safe and effective care to people. Since our last inspection, the provider has created a new well-equipped training and education centre for staff to update their knowledge and skills.
People using the service and those who worked with and for the provider were all complimentary about the way the managers now ran the service, and how accessible and approachable they were. The quality and safety of the service people received was routinely monitored by the managers who recognised the importance of learning lessons when things went wrong.
People were protected against the risk of avoidable harm by staff who knew how to keep them safe. The fitness and suitability of staff to work in adult social care had been thoroughly assessed as part of the providers comprehensive checks on prospective new recruits. Medicines systems were well-organised, and people received their prescribed medicines as and when they should.
Assessments of people’s support needs and wishes were conducted before they were provided with a home care service and involved all the relevant stakeholders. 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. Where staff were responsible for assisting people to eat and drink, their dietary needs and wishes were assessed and met. People were supported to stay healthy and well, and to access relevant community health and social care services as and when required.
People's care plans were person-centred, detailed, and kept up to date, which helped staff provide them with the individualised care at home they needed and wanted. The managers promoted an open and inclusive culture which sought the views of people receiving a care at home service, their relatives and staff who worked for the provider. People were confident any concerns they raised would be listened to and dealt with appropriately. Complaints, concerns, accidents, incidents, and safeguarding issues were appropriately reported, investigated, and recorded. The provider worked in close partnership with other external health and social care professionals and agencies to plan and deliver people’s packages of care.
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 requires improvement (published 26 May 2022) and there were breaches of regulation. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.
Why we inspected
We conducted an announced comprehensive inspection of this service on 11 November 2022. Breaches of legal requirements were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve how they assessed and managed risks people might face, and ensure staff wore appropriate PPE as and when required, were well-trained and arrived on time for their scheduled call visits.
We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the key questions safe, effective, and well-led which contain those requirements.
For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Stockwellcare Support Services on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect. If we receive any concerning information, we may inspect sooner.
Stockwellcare Support Services is a domiciliary care agency providing person care to 55 older people at the time of the inspection.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
Risk assessments were not always in place, nor did they always provide clear guidance as to how staff needed to mitigate risk. People and their relatives told us they did not always feel involved in their care plan reviews. Staff did not always arrive on time for care calls and intelligence indicated the electronic call system was not always used appropriately.
Staff received regular training, however this was not always specific to people’s presenting care needs. People reported that staff did not always wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE). Quality assurance systems needed more detail in relation to findings and actions taken; they did not identify the required improvements we identified during inspection.
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 staff were caring and treated them well. People’s privacy and dignity was respected and staff promoted them to be independent where they were able to. Staff felt well supported by the management team.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
The last rating for this service was good (published 11 July 2019).
Why we inspected
We undertook this inspection as part of a random selection of services rated Good and Outstanding.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Stockwellcare Support Services on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
Enforcement and Recommendations
We have identified breaches in relation to safe care and treatment and good governance at this inspection.
We have made a recommendation in relation to care planning.
Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.
Follow up
We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.
Stockwellcare support services is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to 53 people aged 65 and over. At the time of inspection this was across the boroughs of Lambeth, Wandsworth and Haringey.
Not everyone who used the service received personal care. 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
People felt safe receiving the service, with appropriate action taken to ensure that potential risks to people were monitored and mitigated. Where we identified that some staff were not clear on their understanding of safeguarding the provider took prompt action to organise additional training. Medicines were administered safely and in line with people’s requirements. Incidents and accidents were investigated appropriately. Staff were safely recruited.
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. The provider arranged for staff training and team discussions to improve their understanding of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) following the inspection. Staff received regular training, supervision, appraisal and spot checks of their work. People were supported with their eating and drinking preferences; and to access healthcare professionals.
Staff knew people they looked after well and relatives felt they were well cared for. People’s privacy and dignity was respected; with staff taking steps to promote their independence.
At the time of inspection people’s end of life wishes has not always been highlighted, when raised the provider took immediate action to address this. People received personalised care that provided support in the ways they preferred. Complaints were appropriately responded to.
The service had suitable systems in place to support the review of the quality of care, and make improvements where necessary. Relatives and staff were positive about the management team and the support they received.
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 Good (published 20 January 2017).
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.
Stockwellcare Support Services is a domiciliary care agency delivering care and support to people in the London Boroughs of Lambeth and Wandsworth. At the time of the inspection the service was providing support to 34 people.
The service had a registered manager at the time of the inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
Staff were trained to safeguard people and knew what actions to take to keep people safe. People’s risk of avoidable harm were reduced because they were assessed and plans were made to mitigate them. Staff were suitable and appropriately vetted. People were supported to receive their medicines as prescribed and staff practices minimised the risk of infection.
People were supported by knowledgeable and skilled staff who were supervised and appraised by the manager. People gave their consent to the care they received and were supported people in line with legislation. People were supported to maintain their health and to access healthcare services. People were supported to eat and drink enough.
Staff delivering care and support were caring and kind. People’s privacy and confidentiality were protected and they were treated respectfully by staff.
People received care that was personalised to their needs. Assessments identified people’s needs and care plans guided staff as to how people’s individual needs should be met. People understood the provider’s complaints procedure. The provider gathered and acted upon feedback from people and their relatives.
The service had a registered manager who staff felt was approachable. There were robust quality auditing processes in place and the provider liaised with healthcare services, local authorities and other provider agencies to improve its delivery of care and support.
Stockwellcare Support Services provides personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of our inspection 18 people were using the service.
We undertook an announced inspection to the service on 22 July 2015.
The service had a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People were provided with the support they needed with their personal care. Information was provided by the referring local authority and assessments were undertaken by the service’s operations manager to identify people’s support needs. This included identifying what people were able to do independently and when people required support from staff. People were involved in decisions about their care and staff respected people’s choices. Staff were aware of their responsibilities under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and ensured people consented to the care provided. If people did not have the capacity to consent to their care information was provided from the referring local authority about what decisions had been made in the person’s ‘best interests’.
Risks to people’s health and welfare were identified and managed appropriately. However, we found that some care records did not contain sufficient information about how certain risks were managed. Staff liaised with their managers if they were concerned about a person’s health. Discussions were held with health and social care professionals involved in the person’s care to ensure they received the support they required.
There were adequate staffing levels to provide a safe service. People told us they liked their care worker. However, people told us that staff were often late to appointments and we saw that adequate travelling times were not scheduled between appointments. Staff received on-going training and supervision. People received support from staff that had the knowledge and skills to meet their needs.
The management team undertook checks on the quality of service provision. We saw that no concerns had been raised about the quality of care provided and people were satisfied with the support they received. However, the system to track the frequency of checks on staff performance needed strengthening to ensure internal procedures were met. The registered manager was not aware of all requirements of their registration with the Care Quality Commission.