Updated 14 July 2021
The inspection
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 two inspectors 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 who had commenced their registration 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
We gave the service 72 hours' notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure that the provider or manager would be in the office to support the inspection.
Inspection activity started on 26 May 2021 and ended on 11 June 2021. We visited the office location on 26 May 2021.
What we did before the inspection
We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We reviewed information we had received about the service. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We contacted five people who used the service and six relatives about their experience of the care provided. We contacted 12 care staff, the care coordinator, the training officer the manager and the area manager.
We reviewed a range of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures, audits and governance records. We looked at five people's care records and medication records. We looked at four staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision.
After the inspection
We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records.