Premier Care Limited - Rochdale Branch

Updated 6 March 2020

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 undertaken by two inspectors.

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 CQC. 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

The inspection was announced. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 29 January 2020 and ended on 4 February 2020. We visited the office location on both days.

What we did before inspection

We used 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 reviewed information we had received about the service. We sought feedback from the local authority involved with the service. We asked Healthwatch Rochdale for their views on the service. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke on the telephone with four people who used the service and two relatives about their experience of the care provided. On gaining permission we visited two people who used the service in their homes. We also spoke with eight members of staff including the registered manager, operations manager, care coaches, support workers and the pharmacist compliance officer.

We reviewed a range of records. This included five people’s care records, eight people’s medication records and other records of care provided. We looked at four staff files in relation to recruitment. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including training, policies and procedures were reviewed.

Updated 6 March 2020

Premier Care Limited- Rochdale Branch is a domiciliary care agency. 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. At the time of the inspection the agency was providing personal care to 85 people.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People were provided with safe care and support. Safe systems of recruitment were in place and people told us they felt safe. Risks were well managed. Medicines were stored and administered safely.

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. People’s needs were assessed before they started to use the service. The service was well organised and visits were rarely missed or late. Staff received the induction, training and support they needed to carry out their roles effectively. People's nutritional and health needs were met.

People told us staff were caring and kind and spoke fondly about the staff who supported them. People said, “There is always a smile when they come. I wouldn’t swap them.” Staff and managers knew people well. People were treated with respect and dignity; staff supported people to maintain their independence.

People were provided with personalised care that took account of their needs, wishes and preferences. Care records were person centred. There was an appropriate system in place to manage complaints. People’s wishes for end of life care and support were identified, respected and recorded if they wished.

There were good systems of quality assurance checks and audits. Everyone was positive about the registered manager and the way the service was managed and organised. The registered manager was committed to providing responsive, person centred care and support. Staff we spoke with shared this commitment. The provider had notified the Care Quality Commission (CQC) of significant events such as safeguarding concerns.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published June 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on our published methodology.

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.