Your Life (Cheltenham)

Updated 18 February 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

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 flats within Jenner Court.

There was no registered manager working at the service at the time of the inspection. However, a new manager had commenced in the role and was in the process of registering 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 manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 16 January 2020 and ended on 20 January 2020.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. 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 the manager and two staff members and reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care and medication records. We looked at four 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. We spoke with four people who used the service during the inspection, and two relatives to gain feedback about the service they received.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found.

Updated 18 February 2020

About the service

Your Life (Cheltenham) is a domiciliary care service that provides personal care and support to people living in Jenner Court. The service supported eight people at the time of the inspection.

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 positive about the caring nature and approach of staff. People told us they were supported by staff who were kind and compassionate. They told us they felt safe when staff visited and were confident that any concerns would be dealt with promptly. Appropriate numbers of staff were employed to deliver the care and support people required.

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.

Staff told us they had received appropriate training which supported them to carry out their role. Staff told us they could seek advice from the registered manager and senior carers. The registered manager and staff were passionate about the care they delivered and were driven to improve the service. They communicated and engaged with others such as family members to improve the lives for people who used the service.

The manager acted on concerns to ensure people received care which was safe and responsive to their needs. Staff were trained in safeguarding people and protecting them from harm. Any concerns or accidents were reported and acted on.

The manager monitored the delivery of care through staff observations and feedback from people. Effective quality assurance systems had been established to monitor the quality of the service being delivered.

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 24 August 2017).

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 re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.