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First In Care Services

Overall: Requires improvement read more about inspection ratings

Kingsgate, Office 623, Regus, 62 High Street, Redhill, RH1 1SG 0330 311 0665

Provided and run by:
First In Care Services Ltd

Latest inspection summary

On this page

Background to this inspection

Updated 24 January 2023

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

This 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.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was not a registered manager in post. There was a manager in post who intends to submit an application to register, however, at the time of our inspection this had not yet been completed.

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.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since registration. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. The provider was not asked to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 3 people who used the service and 4 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 4 members of staff including the manager, care workers and the nominated individual. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider. We also spoke with 4 health and social care professionals that have recently worked with the service.

We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at three staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

Overall inspection

Requires improvement

Updated 24 January 2023

About the service

First In Care is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people living in their own homes. At the time of our inspection there were 16 people using the 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. At the time of inspection 8 people were receiving support with the regulated activity of personal care.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

There was a lack of a registered manager, this appeared to have had a direct impact of oversight of the service. People and relatives had not been asked for feedback and there was no quality assurances processes in place. There was a lack of oversight of staffing levels, missed calls and calls of concern were not being responded to in a timely way.

There were not enough staff to meet people’s needs, and there was not always evidence of safe recruitment practises being followed. We received some negative feedback regarding pre-assessments not being thoroughly completed and not completed in a timely way.

People and relatives told us how staff treated them with kindness and respect. They also confirmed staff respected their equality and diversity.

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 had person-centred care plans and detailed care plans to advise staff about how best to communicate with people.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 05 November 2020 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

We inspected in line with inspection scheduling and to formally rate the service.

Enforcement and Recommendations

We have identified breaches in relation to safe care and treatment and good governance of the service at this inspection.

Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.