About the service:

This service is a domiciliary care agency which provides personal care to people living in their own homes. At the time of our visit 10 people were being supported with personal care.

People’s experience of using this service:

We looked at the recruitment of two members of staff and found appropriate checks had not been followed. This included a Disclosure and Barring Service check (DBS), references and a full employment history on their application form. There was no evidence this had been discussed at interview or a satisfactory written explanation sought.

People told us they felt safe with the support they received from the staff. People told us they were supported by staff who knew and consistently met their needs. Staffing levels were continuously reviewed to ensure there were enough staff to provide a flexible and responsive care. However, people supported by the service told us they would like a copy of the staff rota so they would know which staff were scheduled to visit. We have made a recommendation about this.

People’s care and support had been planned proactively and in partnership with them. People felt consulted and listened to about how their care would be delivered. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible.

The service worked in partnership with healthcare professionals and families to ensure people’s health care needs were met. Care plan information focused on a person-centred method of supporting people. Also, information contained what support was required. We discussed with the registered provider to ensure end of life care planning documentation was more prominent in care records. This was to guide staff on the preferred arrangements for end of life for each person. We have made a recommendation about this.

People supported by the service and their relatives consistently told us the registered manager and staff who supported them were polite, reliable, caring and professional in their approach to their work. They spoke positively about the quality of service provided.

There had not been any safeguarding incidents or complaints since the service was registered. However, policies and procedures were in place and the registered provider understood the actions to take should there be any incidents.

The registered provider used a variety of methods to assess and monitor the quality of the service. This enabled the service to be monitored and improve areas that were identified through their quality monitoring processes.

More information is in the detailed findings below.

Rating at last inspection:

This was the first planned inspection of the service since its registration with CQC on 24 August 2017.

Why we inspected:

This was a planned and scheduled inspection.

Enforcement:

Please see the ‘action we have told the provider to take’ section towards the end of the report.

Follow up:

We have requested an action plan from the registered provider as to how they plan to address the breach in regulation and make improvements to the service.

The next scheduled inspection will be in keeping with the overall rating. We will continue to monitor information we receive from and about the service. We may inspect sooner if we receive concerning information about the service.