Background to this inspection
Updated
3 August 2022
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
This inspection was carried out by one inspector.
Service and service type
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.
The service did not have a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was 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 17 March 2022 and ended on 18 March 2022. We visited the location’s office/service on 17 March 2022 and made phone calls to people and staff on 18 March 2022.
What we did before the 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.
We used information gathered as part of monitoring activity that took place on 11 February 2022 to help plan the inspection and inform our judgements.
We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used all this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection-
During the inspection we spoke with four people who used the service about their experience of the care provided, and six relatives. We also spoke with four care staff members, the care co-ordinator and the director. We reviewed a range of records. This included five care records. We looked at three staff files in relation to recruitment. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including audits and training records.
Updated
3 August 2022
About the service
Velvet Glove Care Limited is a domiciliary care agency, providing personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of inspection, 48 people were using the service. 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
Regulatory requirements were not always met. The provider did not have a registered manager in place. The provider did not always notify the Care Quality Commission of certain events, as they were legally required to do.
People received safe care and were protected against avoidable harm, abuse, neglect and discrimination. There were systems and processes in place to safeguard people from potential harm. Staff completed training about safeguarding people from harm and knew how to report abuse
There were sufficient numbers of staff to meet people's needs safely. People were supported by staff who knew them and their needs well. The provider had followed their recruitment practices to ensure people employed were suitable to work at the service and support people.
Medicines were administered safely by trained staff.
Where the provider took on the responsibility, people were supported and encouraged to maintain good nutrition and hydration.
Staff received appropriate induction and ongoing training for their roles
The provider understood their responsibilities and worked in an open and transparent way.
The provider conducted regular checks to ensure any issues were found and resolved.
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.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Why we inspected
The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about staff training, staffing levels and management oversight of the service. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of Safe, Effective, and Well Led only.
We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the Well Led sections of this full report.
You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.
The overall rating for the service has changed from Good to Requires Improvement based on the findings of this inspection.
For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Velvet Glove Care Limited on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to monitor the service and will take further action if needed.
We have identified breaches in relation to failing to notify CQC of relevant events at this inspection.
Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.
Full information about CQC’s regulatory response to the more serious concerns found during inspections is added to reports after any representations and appeals have been concluded.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.
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.