Background to this inspection
Updated
31 March 2020
The inspection
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection team
The inspection was carried out by one inspector.
Service and service type
This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.
The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection. We also needed to allow time for the service to gain people’s consent for us to visit them in person.
What we did before the inspection
Prior to the inspection we reviewed information and evidence we already held about the home, which had been collected via our ongoing monitoring of care services. This included notifications sent to us by the service. Notifications are details about changes, events or incidents that the provider is legally obliged to send to us without delay. We also asked for feedback from the local authority and professionals who worked with the service.
We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with four people who used the service and three relatives about their experiences of the care and support provided. Feedback was gathered through home visits. We also spoke with six staff members, including the registered manager, a team leader and support workers and a professional who worked with the service. We reviewed five care files, four staff personnel files and other records relating to the management of the service and the care and support provided to people, including medicine administration records (MAR), audits and quality monitoring information.
Updated
31 March 2020
About the service
Support and Independence Team – Central and Upper Valley 2 is a domiciliary care service. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats. However the service differs from other domiciliary care services as it is a short term reablement service which helps people regain their independence following periods of illness or time in hospital. People who use this service are not given specific visit times and the length of stay is dependent on the support they require at each visit. The service, provided by Calderdale Metropolitan Borough Council, works in partnership with the local NHS foundation trust with the office based in Hebden Bridge Health Centre. Referrals to the service are usually from the community, Gateway to Care or following hospital discharge. At the time of our inspection 18 people were using the service.
People’s experience of using this service
People felt safe using the service describing staff as open, honest and trustworthy. Staff knew how to identify and report any abusive practice and confirmed training in safeguarding was provided annually. Sufficient staff were deployed to meet people’s needs and provide the support they wanted. Medicines were managed safely, by trained and competent staff.
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. Detailed assessments were completed prior to people starting the reablement process, which were used to create support plans. Staff completed regular training and received ongoing support, to ensure they could carry out their roles safely and effectively.
People spoke positively about the care and support provided. Staff were described as happy, caring and easy to get on with. One person stated, “Everyone of them has put themselves out to do things for me and support me, I am so pleased.” People were treated with dignity and respect and supported to regain as much independence as possible.
People received personalised care which was based around their needs and the goals they wanted to achieve. Reviews were completed to assess people’s progress and ensure their support plans remained relevant. People knew how to complain, though none we spoke with had needed to.
The service was well-led with a clear management structure in place. Staff enjoyed working for the service and were complimentary about the support provided to them. Management were described as approachable and always available. A range of systems were in place to assess the quality and safety of the service, with action plans completed to promote continuous improvement.
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 good (published 6 September 2017).
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
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.