Archived: UKG Care Liphook

Updated 31 October 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

This inspection was carried out by 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 and specialist housing.

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 48 hours’ 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 28 August 2019 with calls to people who used the service and their relatives to seek their feedback. We visited the office location on 29 August 2019.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since it was registered. 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 used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We completed calls to people and their relatives to gain feedback on their experience of care provided by UKG Care Liphook. We spoke with five people and four relatives. We spoke with three members of staff including the provider, registered manager and a senior care worker. We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at three staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We spoke with three care staff and one social care professional who had previous contact with the service.

Updated 31 October 2019

About the service

UKG Care Liphook is a domiciliary care agency providing care and support to mostly older people living in their own homes. 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 20 people were receiving personal care support.

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

People and their relatives told us they felt safe. Staff completed regular training and understood their safeguarding responsibilities. Potential risks to people had been assessed and measures were put in place to ensure their safe management. There were clear safeguarding processes in place to identify, record and respond to all incidents and accidents. People were supported to receive their medicines by trained 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 were encouraged to maintain their independence and staff provided appropriate support to enable people to maintain control of their lives and the care provided. Staff told us they felt valued and supported and had access to a range of training opportunities to enable them to continually develop their skills.

People’s care plans detailed their likes, dislikes and preferences regarding how they would like their care needs met. People told us they received appropriate levels of care and support that was responsive to their needs. There was a clear complaints procedure in place and people told us they felt comfortable sharing any concerns and that they would be listened to.

People and their relatives consistently praised staff’s caring nature and valued the relationships that they had established with staff. People were treated as partners in their care and told us they received high quality care and support that was delivered with dignity and respect.

There was exceptionally strong leadership and commitment in the organisation and the provider drove a culture of continuous improvement and compassionate, person-centred care. The provider consistently sought new ways of working to engage with staff to drive forward their vision and values to achieve high quality care with a “human touch.”

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 14/08/2018 and this is the first inspection.

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.