Archived: Clear Care Limited

Updated 2 December 2017

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 3 and 11 October 2017. Both days of the inspection were announced. The inspection was undertaken by one adult social care inspector and an expert-by-experience in caring for people living with a dementia and older people. An expert-by-experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Prior to our inspection we looked at information we held about the service. This included feedback and any notifications submitted by the provider. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send us by law. We also checked if any information had been received relating to any concerns relating to the care people received.

We also looked at the Provider Information Return (PIR), which we had asked the provider to submit to us prior to the inspection. This is a form that asks the provider to give us some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

As part of the inspection we undertook a number of different methods to understand the experiences of people who used the service. We spoke with five people who used the service and six family members over the telephone and with permission, we spoke with a further two people who used the service and one relative in their own homes. We also spoke with four staff members and the registered manager who was also the nominated individual and one of the directors of the company.

We looked at a number of records relating to the operation and oversight of the service. These included duty rotas, audits and surveys, three staff files, medication records and care files for four people who were in receipt of care.

Updated 2 December 2017

This inspection took place on 3 and 11 October 2017. Both days were announced. We gave the provider short notice of our inspection due to the nature of the service. This was so that the registered manager could be available to assist us with our inspection.

Clear Care Limited is registered to provide personal care to people living with a dementia, a learning disability or autistic spectrum disorder, mental health, older people, physical disability, sensory impairment and younger adults in their own homes. At the time of our inspection 22 people were in receipt of care from the service. There were other people in receipt of a service from the provider but not in receipt of personal care.

The service had a registered manager in post. 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.

At the last comprehensive inspection on 28 August 2015 the service was rated as good overall and was meeting the requirements of the regulations at that time. During this inspection the service was meeting the requirements of the current regulations and was rated as good overall.

People who used the service and relatives told us they were very happy with the care they received and felt safe. Detailed risk assessments had been completed that ensured that staff were aware of individual risks and how to reduce these, in order to protect people from harm. Medicines were safely administered. People told us they were happy with the support they received with their medicines.

Duty rotas confirmed staff allocations, that ensured people received regular and consistent visits from staff. There was a safe system for recruitment in place that ensured staff were suitable for the role for which they were employed.

People who used the service and relatives were very confident in the knowledge and skills of the staff team. Staff files demonstrated a training programme was in place that would equip staff with the skills to deliver good care. The registered manager told us and records we looked at confirmed a proactive approach to ensure staff also received up-to-date and relevant guidance regularly as part of team briefings and team meeting minutes.

It was clear that exceptional links had been developed with relevant professionals that supported a proactive approach to maintaining people’s health and promoted positive outcomes for them.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Staff demonstrated their understanding of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and its relation to protecting people who used the service from unlawful restrictions. Records confirmed consent was sought for a variety of decisions in relation to the care people received. This confirmed people who used the service or their relatives had been consulted about and agreed to the care they received.

People who used the service and their relatives told us they were extremely happy with the care they received from the staff who supported them. They told us they were treated with dignity and respect at all times. Care files we looked at contained relevant individualised information about how to support people’s needs, likes, wishes and choices. People were supported to access a wide variety of diverse individualised activities, such as trips out, accessing the internet, embroidery or shopping.

We saw extremely positive feedback about the service and the care that people received. Although no formal complaints had been received there were policies and procedures in place to enable staff to act on and deal with complaints appropriately.

All the people we spoke with were extremely complimentary about the leadership and management of the service. Audits, quality monitoring and feedback was obtained regularly that confirmed the quality of service being provided to people.