Archived: Buckfastleigh

Updated 21 September 2018

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 20 August and was announced. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit to ensure we were able to speak with the registered manager and conduct home visits with people.

This inspection included phone calls and home visits to people who used the service and their relatives. We visited the office location to see the registered manager, speak with staff and review care records, policies and procedures.

One adult social care inspector carried out this inspection. Before the inspection we reviewed the information we held about the service. This included previous contact about the service and notifications we had received. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send us by law. The provider also completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

We used a range of different methods to help us understand people’s experience of the service. We spoke with eight people who used the service and two relatives in total. We met two people in their own homes along with one relative and spoke with the others over the telephone. We spoke with six care staff and the registered manager.

We saw a range of records relating to people’s care and support and looked at five people’s care records in detail. We also looked at staff recruitment, training, supervision and appraisal records for three members of care staff and looked at records relating to the management of the service, including quality audits. We also reviewed how the service supported people with their medicines.

Updated 21 September 2018

This announced comprehensive inspection took place on 20 August 2018. The service registered with the CQC in September 2017 and this is the first time it has been inspected.

Buckfastleigh is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in the community. It provides a service to older adults. Not everyone using Buckfastleigh received 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. At the time of this inspection 38 people were receiving personal care from the service. People who used the service lived in Buckfastleigh, Totnes, Newton Abbot and the surrounding areas.

The service had a registered manager. 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 registered manager had started working for the service in April 2018 and was still in the process of making a number of improvements to the monitoring and delivery of the service. In the months prior to our inspection there had been a number of staff changes and the service were in the process of recruiting new staff. A recent external audit had been undertaken and this had raised a number of concerns and areas requiring improvement. At the time of our inspection the new registered manager had implemented a number of changes to improve the service and were still working on a detailed action plan to rectify identified issues.

People and staff spoke highly of the new registered manager. Staff praised the changes that had been made since the new registered manager had started. They made comments which included; “Since (name of registered manager) has been appointed Manager, things have greatly improved.”

We found that not all staff had received training in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and their knowledge and understanding in this area had not been checked. However, we found staff worked hard to ensure people were able to make decisions and people’s freedoms were promoted. We made a recommendation for the provider to review their induction package and their mandatory training to include thorough training on the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and a clear method of measuring staff understanding in this area.

People were supported by a caring staff team. People and relatives praised the support staff, the office staff and the management at Buckfastleigh. Comments included, “They are lovely”, “Our regular carer is so very friendly” and “They uplift me when they come. I look forward to them coming.”

People and staff benefited from a leadership team at Buckfastleigh which valued staff contributions, skills and achievements. This was demonstrated by staff ideas being implemented, staff being awarded certificates for their good work and an employee of the month programme. This ensured best practice and good work was recognised.

People were protected from risks relating to their health, mobility, medicines, nutrition and behaviours. People’s individual risks had been assessed and staff had taken action to seek guidance where required and minimise identified risks. Where accidents and incidents had taken place, these had been reviewed and action had been taken to reduce the risk of reoccurrence. Staff supported people to take their medicines safely where required and as prescribed by their doctor.

People told us staff were almost always on time and had time to meet their needs in the way they wanted. The registered manager worked hard to ensure people had consistent staff teams. This helped people develop trusting and comfortable relationships with staff and increase confidence in having staff in their homes.

Staff knew how to recognise possible signs of abuse which also helped protect people. Staff knew what signs to look out for and the procedures to follow should they need to report concerns. Safeguarding information and contact numbers for the relevant bodies were accessible. Staff told us they felt comfortable raising concerns.

Recruitment procedures were in place to help ensure only people of good character were employed by the home. Staff underwent Disclosure and Barring Service (police record) checks before they started work. Staff had the competencies and information they required in order to meet people’s needs. Staff received sufficient training as well as regular supervision and appraisal.

People and their relatives were involved in their care and staff respected people’s wishes. People’s care plans were personalised and included information about how they liked things to be done. People told us they liked to be independent and staff respected this, offering help when needed. One person told us how they enjoyed going for walks on their own every morning and a member of staff from the service called them each morning to ensure they had returned safely. They said; “(Name of staff member) is amazing. She calls after my morning walk just to check I’ve got back in safely.”

There was open and effective management at the service led by the registered manager and the provider. Staff felt supported and valued. An audit system was in place to monitor the quality of the service people received. Records were clear, well organised and up-to-date. Unannounced checks to observe staff’s competency were carried out on a regular basis.

People, their relatives and staff felt able to raise concerns or make a complaint. They were confident their concerns would be taken seriously. People told us they didn't have any complaints. Where complaints had been received they had been managed in line with the company policy.

Further information is in the detailed findings below