Updated 10 August 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 one 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.
The service had a manager registered 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.
At the time of the inspection the registered manager was on long term sick leave, and the nominated Individual was acting as manager with support from a Team Leader. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.
Inspection activity started on July 5th and ended on July 21st. We visited the office location on July 8th
What we did before the inspection
The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.
During the inspection-
We spoke to the nominated individual who is responsible for supervising the management of the service. In this case they are also the provider.
We reviewed a range of records. This included two people’s care records and a variety of records relating to the management of the service including rotas, policies and procedures. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision.
After the inspection
We spoke on the telephone with two people who used the service and four relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with six members of staff including the provider, team leader and care workers.
We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records. We received email contacts from a social worker and a solicitor. We also spoke with another social worker, an occupational therapist, an advocate and a GP.