Home Instead

Updated 11 February 2022

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 completed by two inspectors. Following their visit to the location office, an Expert by Experience completed telephone calls to people and their relatives. 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 houses and flats.

Notice of inspection

We gave a short period notice of the inspection because we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since registering with us. 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 spoke with one person who used the service out of the four contact numbers we were provided; calls to the other numbers were unsuccessful. We also spoke with 11 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with the five members of staff, including a recruiter, a scheduler, the registered manager and two providers, one of whom was the nominated individual. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We reviewed a range of records. This included six people’s care records and multiple medicine 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, staff training, accident and incident records, audits and minutes of meetings were reviewed.

After the inspection –

Following our inspection, we spoke with four care workers and two professionals in charitable organisations on the telephone to gather their views about the service. We also reviewed a variety of information provided by the service.

Updated 11 February 2022

About the service

Home Instead is a domiciliary care agency (DCA). The service provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in the community. At the time of our inspection 30 people were using the service, some of whom were living with the experience of dementia.

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 and their relatives were complimentary about the service. People told us they would recommend the service to others because it was well-led. The management and leaders were passionate about providing an innovative and excellent service. Care and support was ‘person centred’ and the management team supported, motivated and appreciated staff. The service had established good links in the community and had partnered with key organisations including charitable organisations in giving back to the local community. The service operated with a positive atmosphere, and an inclusive and open culture which encouraged people and their relatives to feedback on the standard of care provided.

People received care and support which was safe and personalised to their needs. Staff understood their responsibility to protect people in their care from abuse and neglect, and to report any concerns they had. Risks to people had been identified, assessed and appropriate management plans were in place which provided staff with guidance on how to mitigate risks. Medicines were managed safely, and staff followed appropriate infection control procedures to minimise the risk of infections to the people they supported. Enough staff were available and deployed to meet people's needs.

A comprehensive needs assessment was carried out to ensure people’s needs could be met. People were supported by staff who had been supported through induction, training, supervision and an annual appraisal. They were supported to maintain good health; eat healthily and access healthcare services when required. 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 supported by staff who were kind and caring, respected their privacy and dignity, and promoted their independence. They were empowered to make day-to-day decisions for themselves and to make their own choices about how they would like to live their lives. Staff understood the Equality Act 2010 and applied this to the way they worked.

People and their relatives knew how to make a complaint if they were unhappy and told us their concerns and complaints were addressed promptly. People’s communication needs had been assessed and met. People were supported to maintain and develop relationships with those important to them to minimise the risk of social isolation. The service encouraged people to be engaged in social and leisure activities to keep them stimulated.

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 17 October 2019 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on when the service was registered.

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.