La Belle Care Ltd

Updated 15 March 2018

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check 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.

This inspection took place on 07 February 2018 and was announced. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because it is small and the registered manager is often out of the office supporting staff or providing care. We needed to be sure that they would be in. The inspection was undertaken by one inspector.

Before our inspection we reviewed information we held about the service including statutory notifications that had been submitted. Statutory notifications include information about important events which the provider is required to send us. We also reviewed the provider information return (PIR) submitted to us on 19 October 2017. This is information that the provider is required to send to us, which gives us some key information about the service and tells us what the service does well and any improvements they plan to make.

Inspection activity started on 06 February 2018 and ended on 12 February 2018. We visited the office location on 07 February 2018 to see the registered manager and to review care records and documents central to people's health and well-being. These included care records relating to three people, recruitment records for two staff members, staff training records and quality audits.

Subsequent to the visit to the office location we spoke with two people who used the service and relatives of three people who used the service by telephone to obtain their feedback on how people were supported to live their lives. We received feedback from three staff members to confirm the training and support they received and positive feedback from a health professional who worked closely with the service to provide packages of NHS funded care for people in their own homes.

Updated 15 March 2018

This was the first comprehensive inspection of this service since the provider initially registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in December 2016. This inspection took place on 07 February 2018.

Kennelwood House (Otherwise known as La Belle Care) is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in the community. It provides a service to adults with learning and physical disabilities and older people, including people living with dementia who live in their own homes. At the time of our inspection there were fourteen people using the service.

The service had a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are 'registered persons'. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People's experiences of care were overwhelmingly positive. They told us they were supported by kind and caring staff who often took the time to do things outside of their remit to improve people’s experiences and to take actions that were important to people. People were at the centre of their care and we found clear evidence that their care and support was planned with them and not for them. There was a strong culture within the service of treating people with warmth, dignity and respect. People were fully involved in making decisions about their own care, felt their views were listened to, and respected. People felt that they were treated with dignity and respect.

People felt safe using the service. Staff and the management team demonstrated a good understanding of the different types of abuse that could occur and their role in protecting people from abuse. There were enough staff available to meet people’s needs safely.

People and their relatives told us that the care and support provided was appropriate to meet people's needs. Staff received training to help them to provide people’s care and support. Staff sought people's consent to care. People received support to access support from healthcare professionals as needed.

People and their relatives told us they had been involved in developing people's care plans and felt that their opinion was respected and taken into account. People told us they felt the registered manager took them seriously and if they needed to change or adapt their care they felt they only had to make a phone call. The provider had policies in place to help ensure that any concerns and complaints raised by people who used the service or their relatives were appropriately investigated and resolved.

People and their relatives felt that the registered manager was always approachable with any problems. The registered manager demonstrated a good knowledge of the staff they employed and people who used the service. Satisfaction surveys were routinely distributed to people who used the service, their friends and relatives as part of the provider’s quality assurance system.