Background to this inspection
Updated
1 November 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
Two inspectors and an Expert by Experience undertook this inspection. 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 homes.
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 registered manager short notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure they would be available to support the inspection. Inspection activity started on 25 September and ended on 1 October 2019. We visited the office location on 1 October 2019.
What we did before the inspection
We gathered feedback from six people and eight relatives about their experience of the care provided via the telephone. We reviewed information we held about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from commissioners who work to find appropriate care and support services for people and fund the care provided. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.
During the inspection
We spoke with the registered manager, two care coordinators and four care workers. We reviewed five people's care records and medicine administration records (MAR) to ensure they were reflective of their needs. We reviewed records relating to the management of the service including quality audits, training data and people's feedback. We also reviewed three staff files to check staff had been recruited safely.
Updated
1 November 2019
About the service
Solihull Care Limited is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people living in their own homes. Support is provided to older people, younger people, people living with dementia, people with learning disabilities and people 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. At the time of our inspection visit 36 people were in receipt of personal care.
People's experience of using this service and what we found
Governance had improved since our last inspection, but the provider continued not to have effective oversight of the service provided. Action was planned to address this. People and relatives spoke positively about how the service was run. Staff enjoyed their jobs and the registered manager was proud of the service provided.
People felt safe and they remained living in their own homes in line with their wishes. Risk management had improved since our last inspection and procedures were in place to protect people from harm. Staff understood the risks associated with people's care and knew how to keep people safe. Staff were recruited safely, and enough staff were employed to ensure people received all their care calls, from consistent staff at the times agreed.
People and their relatives had confidence in the ability of staff to deliver care effectively. People received personalised care from staff who knew them well. People received their medicines when they needed them.
People were encouraged to remain independent. People's care and support was provided in a dignified way by respectful staff.
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 had been assessed before they started using the service and people and those closest to
them were involved in planning and agreeing to their care. Overall, care plans contained detailed information to help staff provide personalised care.
The management team and staff worked in partnership with health and social care professionals to ensure people received effective care. Systems were in place to manage and respond to complaints and lessons were learnt when things had gone wrong.
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 31 October 2018).The registered manager 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 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 reinspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.