Care Connect UK

Updated 20 February 2021

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

This inspection was carried out by two inspectors.

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 did not have a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that the provider is legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

Inspection activity started on 26 January 2021 and ended on 2 February 2021. We visited the office location on 26 January 2021.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed all the information we held about the service since it registered with the Commission. We also contacted the Local Authority and local safeguarding teams to gather their feedback.

The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.

We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with two people who used the service and four relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with the nominated individual, two company directors, two care coordinators and six care workers. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We reviewed a range of records. This included eight people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at four 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 also reviewed.

After the inspection

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

Updated 20 February 2021

About the service

Connect Care UK is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of the inspection, 82 people were receiving support with personal care.

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

Not all risks were safely assessed and mitigated to maintain people’s safety. Risk assessments had not been completed or reviewed for some people. Information was not always available to inform staff how to manage any identified risks. Medicines were not always managed safely. Records were not completed consistently to a high standard.

Systems in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service were not always effective. Some of the concerns found during the inspection had been identified by the provider’s systems. However, this had not always resulted in a sufficient and timely response to help keep people safe.

The provider responded immediately after the inspection and provided an action plan to improve safety and quality.

People and relatives told us they felt care was delivered safely by staff who knew them. Staff were safely recruited and deployed in sufficient numbers to meet people’s care needs. Safeguarding policies and procedures were in place to guide staff in their practice. Effective infection prevention and control procedures were in place, including those relating to COVID-19.

The previous registered manager left the organisation in December 2020. The provider was in the process of recruiting a replacement and reviewing management responsibilities. The directors of the company were providing governance and oversight on an interim basis. The provider recognised the value of regular communication with people using the service, relatives and staff. The provider acted in accordance with their duty and shared information in an open, honest and timely manner.

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 on 23 January 2019.

Why we inspected

We received concerns in relation to the management of the service and staff training. As a result, we undertook a focussed inspection to review the key questions of safe and well-led only.

We reviewed the information we held about the service. No areas of concern were identified in the other key questions. We therefore did not inspect them. Ratings from previous comprehensive inspections for those key questions were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.

The overall rating for the service has changed from Good to Requires Improvement. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvement. Please see the safe and well sections of the report.

Enforcement

We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to monitor the service.

We have identified breaches in relation to risk management, the management of medicines and the governance of the service.

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