We carried out a review of the data available to us about Flamelily Independent Living on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Flamelily Independent Living, you can give feedback on this service.
Flamelily Independent Living is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people living in their own homes in the community. The service is registered to support adults under and over the age of 65, people living with dementia, learning disabilities, mental health conditions and sensory impairments. At the time of the inspection, the service was supporting 37 people.
Not everyone who used the service received personal care. 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
Throughout the pandemic, quality assurance systems had not been fully effective. However, the provider had employed a new manager and quality assurance manager in March 2021. Since then, robust quality assurance processes had been put in place. We saw that these had led to significant changes to the service and there were on-going plans for improvement.
There were enough staff to meet people’s needs and ensure that people received their care at the right time in a non-hurried way. Staff had been recruited safely and treated people with kindness and respect.
People received their medicines safely from staff who had received training and whose competency was regularly assessed.
Staff received training in infection prevention and control (IPC), had enough personal protective equipment and were confident about their responsibilities in relation to IPC.
People and their relatives told us they felt safe with staff. People had detailed and clear care plans and risks assessments, which provided staff with personalised information about their needs and ways to reduce any risks identified.
We received consistently positive feedback from people, their relatives and staff about the management of the service and how their feedback was listened to and acted upon.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at the last inspection and update
The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 02 April 2020) and there were two breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.
Why we inspected
We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection of this service on 20 December 2019. Two breaches of legal requirements were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve good governance and in relation to employing fit and proper persons.
We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe and Well-led which contain those requirements.
The ratings from the previous comprehensive inspection for those key questions not looked at on this occasion were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Flamelily Independent Living on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
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.
Flamelily Independent Living is a domiciliary care agency that provides personal care to people living in their own homes in the community. When we inspected they were providing the regulated activity, personal care, to 18 people.
Not everyone who uses the service may receive personal care. 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
The provider did not have effective recruitment and selection procedures to ensure all relevant information about staff was confirmed before they were employed. The provider’s auditing systems were not always effective in identifying risks or in driving improvements.
There was positive feedback from people and their families about the care they received. Feedback from community health and social care professionals was mostly positive, while identifying areas for further development.
People said they felt safe and would contact the office if they had any concerns. The provider had suitable safeguarding policies and procedures that were available to staff and people using the service. Staff received training in safeguarding adults.
People told us, and records we saw confirmed their needs were assessed before the service commenced supporting them. This assessment was used to develop an individual care plan. Staff received an induction, training and supervision.
People said they felt the service supported them well to maintain their health and provided consistent care. Records showed care staff, administrative and management staff contacted and liaised with external professionals if issues were raised in relation to people’s health.
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.
People felt well supported and spoke positively about the care workers and managers. They told us care was provided by a consistent team of staff. People felt able to talk to the managers and staff. They were aware of their care plan and confirmed their involvement in the review and development of it. Care workers promoted and respected people’s privacy, dignity and independence.
People told us the service was responsive to their needs. Care workers usually came on time, stayed for the allocated time and carried out all the agreed tasks. The provider had introduced a new electronic system that enabled them to monitor the time and duration of care visits.
The provider carried out service user and staff satisfaction surveys and we saw the majority of responses were positive. The registered manager visited people using the service, which provided an opportunity to discuss their care in a relaxed and informal atmosphere. The service worked in partnership with other agencies.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 20 December 2018).
The service remains rated requires improvement. This service has been rated requires improvement for the last two consecutive inspections.
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
We have identified two breaches in relation to staff recruitment practices and governance at this inspection. Please see the safe and 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.
Follow up
We will request an action plan for 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 return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.
There were no clear auditing systems meaning that the registered manager did not have full oversight of the service. Errors and omissions in records had not been followed up and pre-employment checks were not always completed correctly.
Most staff had been trained and checked for competence in administering medicines.
Staff completed induction training courses however we received negative feedback from staff about the online training system.
The service was developing at a steady rate, taking on new care packages only when there were sufficient staff to do so. However, the registered manager and care coordinator had to step in to cover care calls if staff were unwell as there were not enough care staff to cover absences.
Some care plans were not person-centred and lacked detail that would enable staff to complete care tasks as people preferred. People were happy with the care they received and had forged positive relationships with their care staff.
Consents were sought by the provider and staff before care was delivered and people and their relatives told us they received respectful care that maintained their dignity.
We received positive feedback from people and staff members about the registered manager and care coordinator.
More information in the detailed findings below.
The service met the characteristics of good in most areas.
Rating at last inspection: This is the first inspection of Flamelily Independent Living since they registered with the Care Quality Commission to provide services in November 2017.
About the service: Flamelily Independent Living is a domiciliary care agency that provides personal care to people living in their own homes in the community. When we inspected they were providing the regulated activity, personal care, to 17 people.
Why we inspected: This was a scheduled inspection to assess the quality of the service during their first year operating.
Follow up: The next scheduled inspection will be in keeping with the overall rating. We will continue to monitor information we receive from and about the service.