Benedon Healthcare Limited

Updated 14 June 2023

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

The inspection team comprised of 1 inspector.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.

This service also provides care and support to people living in 4 ‘supported living’ settings, so that they can live as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because the service is small and people are often out and we wanted to be sure there would be people at home to speak with us.

Inspection activity started on 16 May 2023 and ended on 25 May 2023. We visited the location’s office on 17 June 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 1 person and 2 relatives, 4 care staff and the registered manager, who is also the nominated individual. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider. We reviewed 4 care plans and 2 staff files and a variety of records relating to the management of the service. These included audits, policies and processes, training for staff and medicine records.

Updated 14 June 2023

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

About the service

Benedon Healthcare Limited is a domiciliary care agency that provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in the community and specialist housing. At the time of the inspection there were 10 people using the service.

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

Right Support

Systems and processes to ensure good management oversight of the service were in place. The provider and staff were aware of the responsibilities to safeguard people and supportive measures were in place should people become upset or distressed. The provider had processes in place to record and investigate any incidents, should they occur, to keep people safe.

Risks to people had been assessed and people’s care plans had been reviewed and updated. Staff supported people to maintain their health and wellbeing by accessing healthcare services.

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.

Right Care

People's needs were assessed prior to them receiving care and support from the service. Staff had received the appropriate training to assist them in their role to support people. Staff understood how to promote people's independence and ensured the care they provided treated people with dignity and respect. People were supported to express their views. People's communication needs had been considered and met. People’s medicines were managed safely. The provider had sufficient infection, prevention and control measures in place and staff had access to a good supply of personal protective equipment.

Right Culture

It was clear from conversations with the registered manager and all the staff, they cared passionately about the people they supported. People and their family members told us how supportive the registered manager and their staff were. Regular feedback was sought from people and their support network. Staff felt supported by the provider. Process were in place for managing any complaints.

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 requires improvement (published 21 May 2018) and there were breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about risk assessments and support planning, recruitment and induction processes, staff training and general management of the service. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.

We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from these concerns. Please see the safe, effective and well-led sections of this full report.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Benedon Healthcare Limited on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.