Willow Wood Care Ltd

Updated 22 December 2022

The inspection

We carried out this performance review and assessment under Section 46 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act). We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements of the regulations associated with the Act and looked at the quality of the service to provide a rating.

Unlike our standard approach to assessing performance, we did not physically visit the office of the location. This is a new approach we have introduced to reviewing and assessing performance of some care at home providers. Instead of visiting the office location we use technology such as electronic file sharing and video or phone calls to engage with people using the service and staff.

Inspection team

This inspection was carried out by an 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 a short period 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 6 December 2022 and ended on 14 December 2022.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since they registered with CQC. 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 people and 4 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We also spoke with 5 members of staff including, the nominated individual, who is also the registered manager, the senior care assistant and 4 carer assistants. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We reviewed a range of records. This included 3 people’s care records and 2 staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision.

This performance review and assessment was carried out without a visit to the location’s office. We used technology such as telephone calls to enable us to engage with people using the service and staff, and electronic file sharing to enable us to review documentation.

Updated 22 December 2022

About the service

Willow Wood Care Ltd is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people living in their own homes. At the time of our inspection the service was providing personal care to 4 people, this included older people and people living with physical disabilities.

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

There were systems in place to assess, monitor and manage risks to people, as well as safeguard people from abuse. People and their relatives consistently told us they felt the service was safe. People received support from a consistent staff team, who were recruited safely.

The provider had a system in place to ensure people's needs were assessed prior to their care and support commencing. Staff received regular appraisals and ongoing training, to ensure they had the right knowledge to support people effectively.

People were treated well by kind and caring staff. People and their relatives were involved in decisions about when and how they were supported. Staff knew how to maintain people's dignity and privacy and promote their independence.

The service had developed person centred records that guided staff according to people's individual needs and preferences. The provider had a system in place to manage and respond to complaints. People and their relatives felt confident concerns would be dealt with by the registered manager.

There was a system in place to assess the quality of the service, in order to drive improvement. This allowed the registered manager to have effective oversight of the care being delivered. The registered manager also had a clear desire to ensure the service achieved good outcomes for people.

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.

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

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 23 August 2021 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

Follow up

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

This was an ‘inspection using remote technology’. This means we did not visit the office location and instead used technology such as electronic file sharing to gather information, and video and phone calls to engage with people using the service as part of this performance review and assessment.