Updated 19 October 2022
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 was carried out by one inspector 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.
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 we wanted to make sure the registered manager was available.
Inspection activity started on 8 September and ended on 6 October. We visited the location's office on 8 September. We carried out telephone calls to staff on 5 and 6 October and we contacted families and relatives on 12 September.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. 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 information gathered as part of monitoring activity that took place on 26 July 2022 to help plan the inspection and inform our judgements. We used all this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with one person who used the service and three relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with four care staff including the registered manager and three care staff. We reviewed a range of records. This included two people's care records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision and a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.