16 September 2021
During a routine inspection
Right at Home (Maidenhead and Slough District) is a community-based care provider supporting people with personal care in their own homes. The service is part of the Right at Home agency brand, which has multiple registered locations across England. The service provides care to adults, people with a sensory or physical disability and some people living with dementia. Although based in central Maidenhead, the service covers a wide geographical area of surrounding towns and villages. At the time of the inspection, the service provided personal care to 41 adults and there were 48 staff.
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
Outstanding care was provided to people because the service was and well-led. Staff worked effectively as a team to improve care, ensure people were safe and maximise people’s care outcomes. The service received many local and industry awards for the exceptional care provided to people and for their community involvement. The service embraced continuous improvement in their care approach to enrich people’s lives. The service had an excellent workplace culture for staff. Staff feedback was overwhelmingly positive.
The outcomes of care people received were considered outstanding. The support people received enabled them to reach their maximum potential. Care plans were very person-centred and contained detailed information of how to support people in the best possible way. There was a robust complaints system in place which included lessons learned from prior concerns. People and relatives told us they had no current concerns or complaints. The service actively worked to promote social inclusion, prevent social isolation and encourage people’s independence within the community.
People were protected from abuse, discrimination and neglect. Staff knew people’s risks and how to prevent and protect against harm. Risks related to people’s care were assessed, recorded and mitigated. Sufficient staff were deployed to meet people’s needs and continuity of allocated care workers was fostered. People’s medicines were safely managed.
There was very good staff training and support. Staff received training in additional specialist areas, such as dementia, and became ‘champions’ and able to teach other colleagues. People told us staff had the necessary knowledge, experience and skills to provide appropriate care for people. The service was compliant with the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and associated codes of practice. There was collaborative working with various community healthcare professionals.
The service was very caring. There was extensive complimentary feedback from people who used the service, relative and friends. Staff also commented on the quality of the care. People and relatives were able to participate in care planning and reviews and some decisions were made by staff in people’s best interests. People’s privacy and dignity was respected when care was provided to them. People and relatives praised staff for their dedication and for their work during the pandemic.
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.
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 outstanding (published 29 May 2019).
Why we inspected
We undertook this inspection as part of a random selection of services rated good and outstanding, to test the reliability of our new monitoring approach.
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.