Head Office Also known as Futures care

Updated 21 July 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 30 May 2018 and was announced. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because it is small and the 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 carried out by one adult social care inspector.

Prior to the inspection we looked at the information we had about the service. This information included the statutory notifications that the provider had sent to CQC. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send us by law.

Before the inspection, we asked the provider to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they planned to make. We received this on time and reviewed the information to assist in our planning of the inspection.

We contacted three health and social care professionals to obtain their views on the service and how it was being managed. This included professionals from the local authority and the GP practice.

During the inspection we spoke with three people using the service and looked at the records of four people and those relating to the running of the service. This included staffing rotas, policies and procedures, quality checks that had been completed, supervision and training information for staff.

We spoke with four members of staff and the management team of the service. We spoke with three relatives to obtain their views about the service.

Updated 21 July 2018

The inspection took place on 30 May 2018. This was an announced inspection.

Head Office (Futures Care) is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats. It provides a service to older adults and younger disabled adults. The service will be referred to as Futures Care throughout this report. Not everyone using Futures Care receives regulated activity; CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with ‘personal care’; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided.

At the time of our inspection seven people were using the service.

There was a registered manager working at Futures Care. They told us they had been working for the service for the last year. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission 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.’

This is the first inspection of Futures Care and we rated the service ‘Good’ overall.

The service was safe. People’s medicines were managed safely. Risk assessments were implemented and contained clear guidelines for staff on how to support people and minimise risk.. People were protected from the risk of abuse. Staff had received training around this. There were sufficient numbers of staff supporting people. There were safe and effective recruitment systems in place.

The service provided to people was effective in meeting their needs. Staff had the relevant skills and had received appropriate training to enable them to support people. Staff received good support from management through regular supervisions and appraisals. People were encouraged to make day to day decisions about their life. For more complex decisions and where people did not have the capacity to consent, the staff had acted in accordance with legal requirements. Where required, people and relevant professionals were involved in planning their nutritional support. Where required, people were supported to access a variety of healthcare professionals and appointments were arranged.

The service was caring. People and their relatives spoke positively about the staff. Staff demonstrated a good understanding of respect and dignity. People’s preferences in relation to their cultural or religious backgrounds were clearly recorded. Equal opportunities and diversity were promoted throughout the service.

The service was responsive to people’s needs. People and their families were provided with opportunities to express their needs, wishes and preferences regarding how they lived their daily lives. People’s needs were regularly assessed and care plans provided guidance to staff on how people were to be supported. The planning of people’s care, treatment and support was personalised to reflect people’s preferences and personalities. People were receiving end of life care which was in accordance with their personal preferences. People and relatives told us they had been involved in developing their end of life care plans. The service had a process of responding to complaints.

The service was well-led. Quality assurance checks and audits were completed and these ensured the service was effective in safely meeting the needs of people. Staff, people and their relatives spoke positively about the registered manager. There was a positive culture within the service and the vision and values of the service were clear. Staff demonstrated a good understanding of the vision and values of the service.