A1 Home Care Also known as A1 Home Care Limited

On this page

• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

Well-led – this means we looked for evidence that service leadership, management and governance assured high-quality, person-centred care; supported learning and innovation; and promoted an open, fair culture.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant the service was consistently managed and well-led. Leaders and the culture they created promoted high-quality, person-centred care.

This service scored 79 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The provider had a shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and understanding challenges and the needs of people and their communities.

People, their relatives, staff and professionals described a positive, caring and person-centred culture within A1 Home Care. Feedback demonstrated people felt listened to, respected and supported. The provider promoted an open and responsive culture by actively seeking feedback from people, relatives and staff, and taking action in response. Improvements made as a result of feedback were communicated effectively, ensuring people understood how their views had influenced the development of the service.

People spoke highly of the support they received and the positive impact it had on their lives. One person told us, “The support from A1 means I can relax. They are absolutely superb.” A relative said, “I feel that there is a positive culture within A1 Home Care. I feel that the service puts the people they care for first. I’m delighted to praise them because they deserve positive feedback for the care [relative] receives.”

The registered manager and nominated individual demonstrated a clear commitment to delivering high-quality, person-centred care. Their values and vision were consistently embedded throughout the organisation and understood by staff at all levels. Staff described a culture where promoting people's independence, choice and control was fundamental to the support provided and where achieving positive outcomes for people was a shared goal.

Staff were complementary about the leadership of the service and the support they received. One member of staff told us, “I feel A1 run their care service well and support both the carers and people in their care. They do take their business very seriously, helping families to access other services that are required for their loved ones, for example additional care hours and occupational therapy referrals.” This demonstrated the provider's commitment to advocacy and partnership working to ensure people received holistic support that extended beyond their commissioned care package.

Professionals also praised the service's culture and approach. One professional described A1 Home Care as, “A welcoming, compassionate and community-focused organisation with a strong family feel. The team consistently demonstrate a willingness to go above and beyond, and there is a clear sense that providing outstanding care is something they are genuinely passionate about rather than simply a requirement of their role.” The professional also highlighted staff's strong awareness of communication, care planning and recognising changes in people's needs and wellbeing.

The provider had also developed a strong culture of learning and development. Staff consistently told us they felt valued and supported to develop their knowledge and skills. New staff were supported through induction and training processes, and staff spoke positively about the quality of ongoing learning opportunities available to them. One staff member told us, “I am still learning new techniques from A1 and [name] who does manual handling training is excellent.”

The provider had exceptionally inclusive leaders at all levels who understood the context in which they delivered care, treatment and support and embodied the culture and values of their workforce and organisation. Leaders had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They always did so with integrity, openness and honesty.

Feedback we received about the management of the service was overwhelmingly positive. The registered manager and nominated individual were highly regarded by staff, people, professionals and relatives. Staff consistently told us that they felt supported and able to approach the management team about any concerns and they felt any issues from concerns, changes to personal circumstances or people’s needs, were taken seriously and actions taken quickly to ensure the wellbeing of staff and people. Comments included, “The care at A1 home care is very efficient and any problems that arise with people is communicated well to me. Likewise, I respond to A1 on any concerns about the people I support. I have worked in care for a long time, and this is the best led company I have seen.” Another staff member told us, “As well as our appraisals, the care manager or designated person goes round to the person's home to check that everything is okay with their care or if they feel something could be changed or improved. If any queries/problems do arise they are dealt with at management level and any changes required are made known to all carers by email.” We also saw further involvement from the nominated individual who visits people for coffee and cake on a yearly basis and the registered manager carried out care visits alongside the staffing team, to ensure their visibility and demonstrate further their commitment to support the staff team and people.

The registered manager told us they completed all training prior to rolling it out to the wider team to ensure it was fit for purpose. They also kept up to date with external health and social care resources for example, via the Local Authority, Social Care Institute for Excellence and Skills for Care. The registered manager was also a mental health champion and staff feedback supported that the registered manager had provided care and support to staff during challenging times, and this extended to out of hours to ensure staff were safe and well.

Feedback from professionals was consistently positive about the management at A1 Home Care. One professional told us, “[Name] is an incredibly strong leader, people look up to them, and they try very hard every day to ensure the team operates to their fullest and that people have everything they need in place” and “The commitment of the management team is also highly visible. [Name] nominated individual, is very present within the organisation and clearly cares greatly about both the team and the people supported. They will often pop into training sessions to greet everyone and, on occasions, even joins in with the training activities. This visible and approachable leadership creates a strong sense that management genuinely values its staff and people supported.”

People and their relatives told us they felt the registered manager was supportive and had people’s best interests at the forefront of their care. One person told us, “The manager is especially good; [name] will move mountains for you if they have to. I feel able to raise concerns because I know they will listen and deal with them.” A relative told us, “I haven’t had a single negative experience with A1. A1 has been perfect.” People and their relatives felt able to contact the office and the management team at any point if they had any concerns and felt that they were listened to and that the service would do as much as they could to support their query. The registered manager had an open-door policy and staff felt empowered to speak up and confident that their views would make a difference.

The management team were responsive, open and honest throughout the inspection and responded positively to feedback given.

The provider fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard.

Staff told us they felt able to speak up if they had any concerns. Comments included, “Staff and carers can ring them [management] asking to speak to anyone one of the senior management and they will speak with us.”

The provider valued diversity in their workforce. They worked towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who worked for them.

There was a positive and inclusive culture within the staff team.We received no negative feedback to suggest staff felt unsupported by the management team. Staff consistently told us they were supported within their roles and with personal circumstances when required. A member of staff told us, “Management are approachable and they were very nurturing during my work probation, and I feel I could discuss anything with them. All of the office staff are warm and friendly too.”

The provider had a policy in place for equality, diversity and inclusion and staff had completed the required training in these areas.

The provider had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. They used these to manage and deliver good quality, sustainable care, treatment and support. They acted on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and shared this securely with others when appropriate.

The provider had robust governance systems in place to assess and monitor quality, safety and performance. This included audits, lessons learned around accidents and incidents and ensuring peoples care plans and risk assessments were being reviewed and updated regularly. The provider submitted statutory notifications to CQC as required and referred to external agencies, for example, the local authority when required.

Staff were encouraged to visit the office and any changes to people’s needs were communicated to the wider team to ensure people were kept safe and received the appropriate care and support they needed. The registered manager and nominated individual were regularly present at the service, which provided opportunities for additional oversight.

The provider understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services worked seamlessly for people. They shared information and learning with partners and collaborated for improvement.

We saw evidence of positive partnership working and working collaboratively with external healthcare professionals to improve outcomes for people. We received positive feedback from professionals around the support A1 Home Care gave to people to access healthcare and external agencies, as well as community access. One professional told us, “People frequently attend the office for informal chats and drinks and appear happy, relaxed and excited to be there. This is particularly positive, as people feel comfortable engaging with the management team beyond the formal delivery of their care.”

The registered manager maintained links to the wider community, such as visiting the local Scouts and Beavers group during Loneliness Week, to host a session to help the children’s understanding of loneliness and social isolation and exploring what it means to show kindness and support others.

The provider focused on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation and local system. They encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people. They actively contributed to safe, effective practice and research.

The provider had robust audits and governance systems in place. They used information from audits, concerns and incidents to identify learning opportunities and enhance good practice. The registered manager adopted a positive learning culture within the service. Learning from incidents, feedback from people, their relatives and staff and audits was embedded and shared across the team to help improve outcomes for people and drive continuous improvement.