We carried out a review of the data available to us about Visiting Angels North Surrey on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Visiting Angels North Surrey, you can give feedback on this service.
Visiting Angels North Surrey is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people living in their own homes. At the time of inspection, the service supported people with conditions such as dementia, mental health and physical needs. Out of a total number of 32 people, 12 people were receiving personal care.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
Although staff were provided with guidance on how to mitigate the potential risks to people, there were no risk assessments completed in relation to mental health and the support people required in the event of fire in their homes. This was completed by the provider by the time we finished the inspection.
Staff knew the actions they had to take should they suspected a person to be at risk of abuse. Appropriate recruitment checks were completed before staff started working with people. People had support to take their medicines as prescribed. Infection prevention and control measures were in place and followed by staff to ensure safe care delivery.
Although the provider had followed the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) in practice, the best interests decisions were not recorded as necessary. Staff received on-going support on the job and had to attend training relevant to their role responsibilities. Staff understood the principals of mental capacity and how they had to support people in the decision-making process. Care records reflected the support people required to attend to their health needs and follow a balanced diet.
People appreciated staff that cared for them and described them as kind and caring. People felt involved and had a say in how they wanted to be supported with personal care. Staff encouraged people to maintain their independence skills so they could carry out activities for themselves.
Care plans were personalised and comprehensive which provided guidance for staff in how people wanted to be supported. Information related to people’s communication needs was available for staff who aimed to encourage people to take part in conversations. Systems were in place to gather feedback from people and the information collected was used to improve the service delivery as necessary.
People felt that the leadership at the service was very good. Staff told us that systems in relation to communication between the staff team were well established which helped to share information quickly when necessary. The provider had aimed to improve their systems going forward making sure they achieved consistency and the best outcomes for people they supported. They planned to carry out regular staff meetings and provide staff with opportunities to feedback about the service delivery.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
This was the first inspection of the service since it registered with the CQC.
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on when the service registered with us.
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.