ICare Resource Limited

Updated 9 August 2019

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 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.

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

Our inspection was unannounced. This was because of technical problems but the registered manager and senior staff were available to assist us with the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

Before the inspection, we reviewed relevant information that we had about the service including any notifications of safeguarding or incidents affecting the safety and wellbeing of people. A notification is information about important events, which the provider is required to tell us about by law. We also checked the last inspection report and requested feedback from social care professionals. The provider did not send us a Provider Information Return (PIR) due to technical issues. A PIR is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what it does well and any improvements they plan to make.

During the inspection

We spoke with two care staff, an operations' manager, a quality assurance manager and the registered manager. We reviewed documents and records that related to people’s care and the management of the service. We reviewed seven people’s care plans and seven staff recruitment files. We looked at staff training records, audits and complaint and incident records.

After the inspection

Our Expert by Experience spoke with four people, and six relatives by telephone. We spoke with two care staff by telephone. We sought and received further evidence and clarification which we included in this report.

Updated 9 August 2019

ICare Resource Limited provides personal care to adults living in their own homes. At the time of our inspection, the service provided personal care to 58 people. 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

The provider made improvements to the service following our last inspection. Medicine's records were available and there were no gaps in them. The provider had monitored and audited aspects of the service to identify and address shortfalls to ensure people received safe care.

Feedback from people, relatives and staff was obtained through various means. The registered manager listened to people and operated an open and transparent service.

People were protected from the risk of harm. The provider had a policy on adult safeguarding and staff knew who to contact if they became aware of a person being abused. People had risk assessments which identified possible risks and how to manage them.

Except in emergency cases, people's needs were assessed by staff before they started using the service. For people referred to the service on an emergency bases, staff received their care plans in advance so they knew how to support them. Care plans were personalised and included people's specific needs such as their religion, culture and communication needs. Staff understood equality and diversity and knew that any discriminatory practices were not tolerated.

Staff supported people who needed help with meals. The meals met people's dietary requirements.

Staff worked with other professionals to support people to have access to social and healthcare services.

Staff felt supported in their roles. They received supervision and training which enabled them to develop their knowledge and skills. Staff recruitment processes were robust ensuring that suitable staff were employed at the service. There were also enough staff to provide care and support people needed.

Staff were kind, compassionate and caring. They treated people with respect and dignity by giving them choice and promoting their independence.

The registered manager was open to ideas from people, relatives, staff and others and was committed to making improvements. There was a complaints procedure in place.

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 support this practice.

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 requires improvement (published 3 August 2018) and there was a breach of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

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.