Violet Care Agency Ltd

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 requires improvement. At this assessment, the rating has changed to good. This meant the service was consistently managed and well-led. Leaders and the culture they created promoted high-quality, person-centred care.

People, relatives, and staff were positive about how the service was run and the management team.

Systems were in place to drive improvement and identify any issues. Action plans were in place where needed.

The team worked with external agencies and partners to help ensure people received good care. The management team shared their expectations for the service they wanted to provide, and staff were clear on how to achieve this.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

People and their relatives were positive about the approach and culture of the service. A relative told us, “The company seems well organised, and I would recommend them.” Staff were clear on the direction of the service and how they played a part in achieving it.

The provider had a service improvement plan in place. There were also surveys sent to people, relative and staff to obtain feedback. Staff meetings were held to share and seek information.

Staff were positive about the culture and approach of the service. A staff member said, “I think Violet Care tries to treat all people equally. For certain, I know we do not discriminate. I would recommend the service because we deliver person centred care and sometime go above and beyond.”

There were systems in place to ensure care was personalised, safe and to a good standard. Training and guidance were in place to invest in staff and develop skills. This helped to ensure the right culture was embedded to provide a people first approach. Feedback from people, relatives and staff, we found staff were aware of the provider’s expectations.

Staff were positive about how the management team engaged with, respected, supported, and involved them. A staff member said, “I can speak freely as the manager practise open door policy as well as my supervisor.” Another staff member said, “The office operates an open-door policy, and they would listen, but resolution of issues can sometimes take a long time.” We discussed this with the registered manager who advised this would normally be around financial information such as pay rises and milage allowance and how communicating the stage each process was at with staff would be beneficial.

There were staff meetings, supervisions and surveys carried out to help ensure staff had the opportunity to raise queries or concerns and share ideas.

People and their relatives told us they had opportunities to give feedback and had any complaints resolved to their satisfaction. A relative said, “The service is well organised but short staffed. I think the carers seem overloaded with work although this has not affected the quality of my [person’s] care. I have had a couple of complaints over the time concerning timing of calls. These have always been successfully resolved, promptly to my satisfaction. I have completed a feedback QA form. I would recommend them.”

People and their relatives felt they were kept informed, and they were listened to, with any actions needed being taken. A relative said, “[Person] has been with them 2 months and we have been already asked for feedback. I have reported one concern which was that the carer did not use the key safe properly. This was handled straight away to my satisfaction.”

People and relatives spoke positively of the approach of the management team. A relative said, ““I know the manager who does things by the book, and I think my care is good. Sometimes the key safe has not been used properly and I have rung the office, and it was sorted straight away and has not happened since.”

Staff told us learning was shared through meetings and updates. A staff member said, “Violet Care Agency give a good opportunity to also learn and carer development as well.”

Learning was taken and shared with the staff team during meetings, supervisions, spot checks and messaging.

At the previous inspection in August 2023, we found systems and processes did not provide effective oversight and robust monitoring which placed people at risk of receiving a poor service. This was a breach of regulation 17 (Good governance) of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.

At this inspection we found the provider had made improvements and was no longer in breach of regulation 17 (Good governance).

There were governance systems to help identify and address any issues. These checks covered key areas such as visit times, care notes, care plans, health and safety, accidents, incidents, complaints, and medicines. Where issues were found, a plan was implemented and actioned to resolve it. The registered manager told us, “The delay since the last inspection has been positive in a way as it has allowed us to implement, adjust and improve our systems to embed better practice.”

There were welfare calls or texts to all staff starting on early morning shifts to ensure they were ok, working at their first calls. The registered manager told us this meant if any staff were not working, office staff could immediately cover the visits, and this did not delay people’s care.

Management checks were carried out to help ensure staff were working in accordance with guidance, training, and expectations and to check people were happy. A staff member said, “The service runs spot checks on staff.”

Staff were positive about the management and running of the service. A staff member said, “I think management is doing their best and service is okay.”

People and their relatives felt they were kept informed, and they were listened to, with any actions needed being taken. A relative said, “[Person] has been with them 2 months and we have been already asked for feedback. I have reported one concern which was that the carer did not use the key safe properly. This was handled straight away to my satisfaction.”

People and relatives spoke positively of the approach of the management team. A relative said, ““I know the manager who does things by the book, and I think my care is good. Sometimes the key safe has not been used properly and I have rung the office, and it was sorted straight away and has not happened since.”

Staff told us learning was shared through meetings and updates. A staff member said, “Violet Care Agency give a good opportunity to also learn and carer development as well.”

Learning was taken and shared with the staff team during meetings, supervisions, spot checks and messaging.

Staff told us information was shared and training provided to drive improvements and innovation. A staff member said, “We receive weekly messages on how things are going and also management sends praise for hardworking staff and other staff information pertaining to staff wellbeing.”

The provider had a good understanding about learning and improvement. Following our last inspection they had implemented several systems which were robust and had improved people’s experience. The registered manager told us they were exploring artificial intelligence to further improve systems and streamline the processes for medicines management and swifter care planning.