Featherbed Care

Updated 11 July 2019

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 Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides live in support and personal care to people in their own houses and flats. The service can provide support to adults of all ages, people with dementia or mental health problems, and people with physical disabilities or sensory impairment.

The service had 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 was a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection. We also wanted to be sure that the person using the service would be happy to speak with an inspector.

Inspection activity started on 18 June 2019 and ended on 19 June 2019. We visited the office location on 18 June 2019. We spoke with people, relatives and staff on 19 June 2019.

What we did before the inspection

Before the inspection, we reviewed information we had received about the service. We looked at the notifications we had received for this service. Notifications are information about

important events the service is legally obliged to send us within required timescales. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.

We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with one person who used the service and one relative about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with three members of staff including the registered manager, training manager and care staff.

We reviewed a range of records including two people’s care records, medication records and one staff file. We also reviewed a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records. We spoke with two professionals who had regular contact with the service.

Updated 11 July 2019

About the service

Featherbed Care is a domiciliary care agency. It provides live-in companion and personal care services to adults who live in their own home. At the time of the inspection one person was receiving support with personal care from the agency.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

Care and treatment supported people to maintain their independence and quality of life. People and relatives were supported to express their views and preferences, and were treated with dignity and respect. Staff were motivated to deliver person-centred care which focused on getting positive outcomes for people. All feedback we received about staff and the organisation was positive.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their life 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’s needs and preferences were assessed before they received support from the service and these were regularly reviewed. Care plans gave guidance to staff about what people could do for themselves and how best to provide support.

People were safe and were protected from avoidable harm or abuse by staff who were trained and supported by effective policies. Individual risks were assessed and controlled, and staff were confident in safely managing medicines. The recording of medicines administration had recently been improved.

People were supported to eat and drink enough to meet their individual needs and preferences. People had access to routine and specialist healthcare services.

Staff had been safely recruited to ensure they were suitable to work with people. Staff received supervision and support. This meant they had the skills and knowledge to effectively support people. Staff praised the availability of managers for support, advice and guidance at all times.

Staff were clear about their responsibilities, and the service was consistently managed and well-led. Effective systems were in place to monitor and review quality and performance, and actions were promptly taken when shortfalls were identified.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with CQC in July 2018 and this was their first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection to check whether the provider was meeting legal requirements and regulations, and to provide a rating for the service as directed by the Care Act 2014.

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.