Sarah's Carers (Suffolk)

Updated 17 August 2022

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

The inspection was undertaken by two inspector and an Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.

Registered Manager

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 we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 20 June 2022 and ended on 29 June 2022. We visited the location’s office on 21 June 2022.

What we did before inspection

We reviewed any information we had received about the service. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work 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 five people who used the service and three relatives about their experience of the care provided. We received feedback from 14 members of staff. We reviewed a range of records. This included people’s care records and medication records. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including audits were viewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records.

Updated 17 August 2022

About the service

Sarah's Carers Suffolk is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to 54 people. The service provides support to older people and those living with dementia in their own homes, as well as a ‘live in carer’ service.

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

People felt safe and well cared for by the staff that visited them. A person told us, “I do feel safe, they are all really lovely [care staff] who come out and they get on with their job - that’s the main thing.”

There were sufficient staff to ensure people received their care as planned. One member of staff told us, “I do have some [people] that I see on a more regular basis. In my opinion having regular [care] benefits both the [person] and the carer as it enables continuity of care and enables me to build a good relationship with the [person] and builds on trust.”

Staff were recruited safely and received regular training and competency assessments. Medicines were managed safely, and staff were appropriately trained.

Staff respected people's diverse needs and treated them with privacy and dignity. People spoke highly of the care they received. One person said, “The care staff are so caring, I’ve only got to ask them for something, and they do it.”

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.

The service was well-led by a management team who were passionate about delivering quality care and achieving the best possible outcomes for people. People, relatives and staff spoke positively about the leadership of the service.

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 the service under the previous premises was Good, published on 4 January 2018.

Why we inspected

This service had not previously been inspected, under this current address and registration, and we wanted to check that people were receiving safe care and support.