P & E Care Limited

Updated 21 August 2019

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 team consisted of 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.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service two working days’ 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.

The Inspection activity started on 23 July 2019 and ended on 26 July 2019. We visited the office location on the first day of activity and followed this up with calls to people and the registered manager of the last day.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection and sought feedback from the local authority who commission from the service. We also reviewed the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with five people about their experiences of the support they received from the service. We also spoke with the provider’s nominated individual, the registered manager and three care staff to help understand how the service was being run and what it was like to work there. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We reviewed a range of records. These included four people's care records and staff records relating to their recruitment, training and supervision. We also looked at records relating to the management of the service such as the provider’s policies and procedures, people’s medicine administration records (MARs) and quality assurance information.

Updated 21 August 2019

P & E Care Limited is a domiciliary care service providing personal care and support to people living in their own homes. The service was supporting 32 people at the time of this inspection.

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

People told us they felt safe. Risks to people had been assessed and staff knew how to manage identified risks safely. There were sufficient staff employed by the service to meet people’s needs. People told us staff visited them at the times they expected and that they had not had any missed visits. The provider followed safe recruitment practices. People received appropriate support, where required, to take their medicines. Staff worked in ways that minimised the risk of infection.

People were protected from the risk of abuse because staff knew the types of abuse that could occur and the action to take if they suspected abuse had occurred. Staff went through an induction when they started working for the service and were supported in their roles through training and regular supervision. People were supported to maintain a balanced diet and had access to a range of healthcare services when required.

Staff sought people’s consent when offering them support. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives. Staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. The provider worked with other agencies to ensure people received effective, high quality care. Staff were aware to report any incidents and accidents which occurred. The provider reviewed incident and accident records for any learning and to reduce the risk of repeat occurrence.

People’s needs were assessed before they started using the service. They were involved in the development of their care plans, which reflected their individual needs and preferences. Staff treated people with care and consideration. People were involved in making decisions about the support they received. Staff treated people with dignity and respected their privacy.

People knew how to complain and expressed confidence that any issues they raised would be addressed by the provider. Staff supported people to take part in activities, to reduce the risk of social isolation. The registered manager demonstrated a good understanding of the responsibilities of their role. Staff spoke positively about the support they received from the provider and registered manager. They told us they worked well as a team and were well supported by the registered manager.

The provider had systems in place for monitoring the quality and safety of the service. People’s feedback was sought through regular conversations with the registered manager and an annual survey. The outcome of the most recent survey showed that people experienced positive outcomes from the support they received.

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

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 14 August 2018) and there was a breach of one regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of the regulations.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.