- Homecare service
Blue River Home Care Waltham Abbey Also known as Blue River Home Care Greater London
Assessment report published 18 May 2026
Contents
Ratings
Our view of the service
Date of assessment: 10 March 2026 to 17 March 2026.
Blue River Homecare Ltd provides personal care and support to people who require assistance in their own home. This service is a domiciliary care agency. At the time of our assessment 14 people were being supported by the service. 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.
We carried out a comprehensive assessment. This assessment was announced. We gave the service 24 hours’ notice because it is a domiciliary care service and we needed to be sure the registered manager would be available.
We identified breaches of regulations relating to safe care and treatment and good governance. Information about people’s individual risks was not consistently documented, kept up to date, or detailed enough to explain how risks should be appropriately managed and reduced. Care plans lacked sufficient detail to ensure staff could deliver safe, effective, and person-centred care. The registered manager’s governance systems did not consistently provide assurance that the service was being effectively managed. Quality assurance processes were not robust and had failed to identify the concerns found during the inspection.
In instances where CQC have decided to take civil or criminal enforcement action against a provider, we will publish this information on our website after any representations and/or appeals have been concluded.
We have asked the provider for an action plan in response to the concerns found at this assessment.
People's experience of this service
Feedback from people and relatives was positive and people told us they felt safe and were well cared for. One person told us, “Yes I feel safe with my carers.” A relative said, “[Relative] is definitely safe with [their] carers.”
People spoke positively about staff and described them as kind, caring and respectful. They told us staff knew them well and understood their individual needs and preferences. This helped people to feel comfortable and supported in their own homes. People also told us they were supported by a regular team of staff, which promoted continuity of care and helped to build trusting relationships. However, not everyone was fully aware of their care plans or how their care was formally recorded. Whilst this did not appear to impact people’s day-to-day experiences, it meant some people were less involved in understanding how their care was planned and reviewed.