Archived: Nimble Care

Nimble Care is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes in the Chippenham area. It provides a service to older adults and younger disabled adults. At the time of our inspection 16 people who received a regulated activity, were using the service.

Not everyone using Nimble Care receives a regulated activity; CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with ‘personal care’; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided.

There was a registered manager in post. 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.

The service was safe. Staff knew how to recognise the signs of abuse and what to do about it. Risks to people’s safety was assessed and actions put in place to minimise those risks. Medicines were managed safely.

Staff were recruited safely and were subject to an induction period which ensured they were confident, knowledgeable and competent to carry out their support duties.

Staff received mandatory training, both face to face and on-line. People were supported by staff who benefitted from regular one to one supervision and spot checks to ensure their practice was of a good standard.

Appropriate consents and legal representations were in place. Staff had training in and understood the Mental Capacity Act but needed to know how to fully apply its principles to their work.

People told us the staff were very caring and made them feel valued. Support for people was delivered in a way that promoted their independence. People were treated with respect and dignity.

The service was responsive to people’s changing needs. Support plans were reviewed and updated when any changes happened.

People had personalised support plans developed with people and their family or representative. People were supported to maintain their interests and activities.

The service worked closely with professionals from the local authority, health and social care to assess care needs and provide the appropriate care to meet people’s needs.

The registered manager was passionate about delivering a good quality service which was person centred and effective. The management team regularly assessed and monitored the quality of care being provided.

The service sought feedback from people, relatives and staff to gain a good understanding of potential improvements to make. There was a complaints procedure in place, however the service had not received any complaints since being in operation.