This inspection took place on 19 March 2019 and was announced. We gave the provider 48-hour notice so we could be sure someone would be available to meet with us. The inspection was completed by one inspector. This inspection was the first inspection since the organisation registered with us on 10 October 2017

About the service:

UK Central Group is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes. On the day of inspection, the agency was providing care to six people. There was a registered manager in post. 'A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are 'registered persons'. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.'

People’s experience of using this service:

People told us they felt safe with the staff who supported them. People told that staff were kind and considerate. Relative spoken with told us that the staff were respectful. There were sufficient staff available to support people and calls were completed on time. People reported no missed calls so peoples care needs were met.

People had support with their medication when required from staff. We found that the medication administration records did not always reflect how staff supported people. Staff had completed training in the safe administration of medication and various other training. However updated training was not always completed in a timely manner to ensure staff skills were updated.

Risks associated with people care had been assessed to protect people from the risk of avoidable harm. Risk assessments were not always updated when people’s needs changed to ensure continuity of monitoring. Staff were aware of how to protect people from the risk of abuse and confirmed who they would report any concerns to, including external agencies if required. The registered manager ensured only suitable people worked at the agency. Recruitment checks were completed and included references and checks with the Disclosure and Barring Service. (DBS)

People confirmed the care they received met their individual preferences and choices. Care plans were reflective of people's current needs. There was a complaints procedure to enable people to make complaints and people spoken with were aware of these procedures. People told us they felt that the registered manager and staff would address any concern they had.

People and their relatives told us that staff were very kind and caring and treated them with dignity and respect.

The registered manager was keen to improve the service for people. However, systems to monitor the quality of the service provided were not sufficient to ensure that people received a consistently good service.

This was a planned inspection.

Rating at last inspection: This was the service first inspection since registration on 10 October 2017

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection.

Enforcement Requirement Notice

The evidence above showed that the provider was in breach of Regulation 17 of the Health and Social Care Act (HSCA) 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk