Creative Living Care Services

Updated 29 June 2019

This 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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team: The inspection was carried out by one inspector and an expert by experience. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of caring for an older person.

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

There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager 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 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because it is small, and the manager may be out of the office supporting staff or providing care. We needed to be sure that they would be in.

Inspection site visit activity started on 5 June 2019 and ended on 14 June. We visited the office location on the 5 and 6 June 2019 to see the manager and office staff; and to review care records and policies and procedures.

What we did:

Before the inspection, we reviewed the Provider Information Return (PIR). This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We also reviewed notifications we had received. These are events within the service the provider is required to tell us about. We read the previous inspection reports and action plans the provider had sent following the previous inspection.

During the inspection we:

Reviewed four people’s care records and discussed these people with the registered manager and staff we spoke with.

We reviewed four staff recruitment and training files.

We discussed the complaints process and complaints received within the past 12 months.

We reviewed the improved audits and quality assurance system.

We spoke with five people by telephone and two relatives.

We met and spoke with three staff and spoke with one by telephone to discuss their training, support and how they met people’s needs.

We reviewed the medicine policy and checked the management of people’s medicines.

Following the inspection, we received feedback from eight people and two professionals via comment cards we had left with the registered manager.

Updated 29 June 2019

About the service:

Creative Living Care Services is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people in their own houses or flats. At the time of the inspection there were 17 people receiving personal care.

Not everyone using Creative Living Care Services receives a regulated activity; the CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with ‘personal care’; help with tasks in relation to personal hygiene and eating. Where people receive personal care, we also take into account any wider social care provided.

People’s experience of using this service:

People were happy with the service they received and liked the staff who they found to be kind and caring. People felt safe while receiving care and support. Management and staff had an awareness of their responsibility regarding reporting any actual or suspected abuse.

People received a consistent and reliable service, provided by staff who they were familiar with.

Risks to people’s care were assessed and reviewed in the event of changes. These assessments provided guidance for staff and involved people and family members where appropriate. Care plans were detailed, and person centred to match the individual needs of people using the service.

People were supported with their medicines as prescribed. People received the care and support they needed to ensure they received meals and assistance with their healthcare needs if this was part of their support package.

Recruitment checks were made before staff commenced working with people. New staff undertook shadowing experiences with more experienced members of staff to introduce them to people and their role. Staff received induction training and ongoing training to meet the needs of the people they supported. Staff felt supported.

Staff and management worked with other agencies and professional where required, for example people’s doctors and chemist.

People were treated with respect and dignity and could make choices about their care and support. Staff ensured people consented to care being given. Staff had knowledge about infection control procedures and used protective equipment to reduce the risk of cross infection.

People and their relatives told us any concerns or complaints made would be listened to. Staff felt well supported by the management. The provider had systems in place to monitor the service.

Rating at last inspection:

At the last comprehensive inspection, the service was rated as Requires Improvement (The last report was published 5 June 2018). Enforcement action was taken. Following this inspection, we carried out a focused inspection on the key question, “Safe” (The last report was published 21 August 2018).

At this comprehensive inspection the overall rating had improved to Good.

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection to look at improvements the service had made following the previous rating. At this inspection we found improvements had been made.

Follow up:

We will continue to monitor the service to ensure that people receive safe, compassionate, high quality care. Further inspections will be planned based on the rating. If we receive any concerns, we may bring our inspection forward.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk