About the service Elite Care Wigan is a domiciliary care agency. It is part of the local authorities ‘‘Ethical Community Services Framework’, covering packages of care across the borough. The service also supports people privately via self-funding or direct payments. At the time of the inspection 21 people were using the service.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People spoke positively about the care and support provided by Elite Care Wigan and said they would, and in some cases already had, recommended the service to others.
People and their relatives said they felt safe and comfortable in the staff’s presence. Each person was supported by a set team of carers, which helped form positive working relationships and a sense of familiarity.
People told us their carers were well trained and provided personalised care which met their needs and wishes. Staff had received a comprehensive induction, along with ongoing training to ensure knowledge and skills remained up to date.
Care files contained detailed information about people and how they wished to be supported and cared for. These had been reviewed regularly to reflect people’s changing needs.
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 this practice.
The service was exceptionally responsive to peoples assessed and changing needs, adapting and in some cases creating new methods and systems to support the delivery of care. The service had been able to effectively support a number of people, other providers had experienced difficulty in engaging.
Staff told us they felt fully supported and listened to. They had opportunities to discuss their roles and any issues or concerns via regular supervision, team meetings or by calling into the office, where an ‘open door’ policy was in place.
People and their relatives had been provided with details of how to raise a complaint internally, along with details of how to escalate the complaint should they not be happy with the response or action taken. None of the people we spoke with had raised a formal complaint, but all confirmed they would feel comfortable speaking to any of the staff about concerns.
The service used a range of systems to monitor the quality and effectiveness of the care and support provided. The service worked closely with the company who had developed the electronic system, to ensure it was fit for purpose and met the evolving needs of people and the service.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
This service was registered with us on 07/06/2018 and this is the first inspection.
Why we inspected
This inspection was part of our scheduled plan of visiting services to check the safety and quality of care people received. Newly registered services are inspected within 12 months of registration.
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.