Clarence Care Ltd

Updated 5 February 2019

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team: The inspection team consisted of 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 in the community.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was announced and took place on 19 December 2018. We gave the service 48 hours' notice of the inspection site visit to ensure the registered manager would be present and to ensure people's consent was gained for us to contact them for their feedback.

What we did:

We used information the provider sent to us in the Provider Information return (PIR). This is information we require providers to send to us at least once annually to give us some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We looked at information we held about the service, including notifications they had made to us about important events. We also reviewed all other information sent to us from other stakeholders, for example, the local authority and members of the public.

During the inspection, we spoke with five people using the service and three relatives to ask about their experience of care. We spoke with the registered manager who is also the provider. We also spoke with the provider human resources lead, the care co-ordinator, one senior carer and three care staff.

We looked at the care records for six people, two staff employment related records and records relating to the quality and management of the service. Details are in the Key Questions below.

Updated 5 February 2019

What life is like for people using this service:

• Improvements had been made following our previous inspection in October 2017 to address the areas we identified as requiring improvement.

• People were supported by staff to stay safe and who understood the need to ensure they consented to the care they received. People told us that they received care from regular staff who arrived on time and stayed for the agreed length of time. The provider ensured consistency in staff support so people and staff were able to build positive relationships.

• People were well cared for by staff who treated them with respect and dignity and encouraged them to maintain their independence. People received care and support based on their individual assessment, needs and preferences.

• Staff liaised with other health care professionals to meet people’s health needs and support their wellbeing.

• Staff received training that was appropriate to them in their role and supported them in providing care in the way people wanted.

• Records needed to improve. The provider had quality assurance systems in place, however they were not fully effective as they had failed to identify some areas requiring improvements.

• Staff spoke positively about working for the provider. They felt well supported and that they could talk to management at any time, feeling confident any concerns would be acted on promptly.

• People spoke highly of the overall service and the management team positively encouraged feedback and inclusion and were keen to grow their service.

Rating at last inspection: At the last inspection the service was rated as ‘Requires Improvement’ (report published 6 October 2017).

About the service: This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in the community. At the time of the inspection it was providing care to twenty-four people.

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. The registered manager for Clarence Care is also the provider

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection based on the rating at the last inspection.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor the service through the information we receive until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.