Archived: Hartlepool Care Services Limited

Updated 24 July 2018

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection site visit activity started on 29 May 2018 and ended on 5 June 2018. It included three visits to the provider’s office to speak with the management team and office staff; and to review care records and policies and procedures. One adult social care inspector and an expert by experience formed the inspection team. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of using, or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

During our inspection we spoke with 23 people who used the service and two family members. In addition to the registered manager, we also spoke with the director, care manager, marketing manager and five members of staff. We looked at the care records of five people who used the service and the personnel files for four members of staff.

Before we visited the service we checked the information we held about this location and the service provider, for example, inspection history, statutory notifications and complaints. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send to the Commission by law. We contacted professionals involved in caring for people who used the service, including commissioners and safeguarding staff. We also contacted Healthwatch. Healthwatch is the local consumer champion for health and social care services. They give consumers a voice by collecting their views, concerns and compliments through their engagement work. Information provided by these professionals was used to inform the inspection.

We used information the provider sent us in the Provider Information Return. This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

Updated 24 July 2018

This inspection took place on 29 May, 30 May and 5 June 2018 and was announced. This was to ensure someone would be available at the office to speak with us and show us records.

Hartlepool Care Services Limited is a domiciliary care agency and is known locally as ‘Carewatch’. It provides personal care to adults living in their own houses and flats in the community.

This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

On the day of our inspection there were 324 people using the service.

The service had a registered manager in place. A registered manager is a person who has registered with CQC to manage the service. Like providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

We last inspected the service in May 2016 and rated the service as ‘Good’. At this inspection we found the service remained ‘Good’ however some statutory notifications had not been submitted to CQC. We are dealing with this matter outside the inspection process.

People told us they felt safe with the staff at Hartlepool Care Services Limited. Some people told us staff did not always arrive on time. The provider was aware of this and was implementing a new call monitoring system.

There was an effective recruitment and selection procedure in place and relevant vetting checks were carried out. Staff were suitably trained and received regular supervisions and appraisals.

Accidents and incidents were appropriately recorded and risk assessments were in place. Safeguarding procedures had been correctly followed and staff had been trained in safeguarding vulnerable adults.

Appropriate arrangements were in place for the safe administration and storage of medicines.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives, and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People were protected from the risk of poor nutrition and care records contained evidence of people being supported during visits to and from external health care specialists.

People who used the service and family members were complimentary about the standard of care at Hartlepool Care Services Limited.

Staff treated people with dignity and respect and helped to maintain people’s independence by encouraging them to care for themselves where possible.

Care records showed that people’s needs were assessed before they started using the service and support plans were written in a person-centred way. Person-centred means ensuring the person is at the centre of any care or support plans and their individual wishes, needs and choices are taken into account.

People were protected from social isolation.

The provider had an effective complaints procedure in place and people who used the service were aware of how to make a complaint.

The provider had an effective quality assurance process in place. Staff said they felt supported by the management team. People who used the service and staff were regularly consulted about the quality of the service via meetings and surveys.