Filcare Ltd

Updated 14 June 2023

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

This inspection was undertaken by 1 inspector.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection the registered manager in post was also the nominated individual.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 30 May 2023 and ended on 06 June 2023. We visited the location’s office on 31 May 2023.

What we did before inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since registration. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who worked with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We sought feedback by telephone and email from people who used the service and their relatives, care workers, partner agencies and external health and social care professionals. We received feedback from 2 external health and social care professionals, 8 care workers, 2 people who received care and support, 3 relatives, the care manager and the registered manager.

We reviewed records including staff training, complaints and compliment logs, accident and incident trackers and the registered manager’s governance and monitoring documents. We reviewed care plans and risk assessments for 2 people and recruitment documents for 2 care workers.

Updated 14 June 2023

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

At the time of the inspection, the location did not care or support for anyone with a learning disability or an autistic person. However, we assessed the care provision under Right Support, Right Care, Right Culture, as it is registered as a specialist service for this population group.

About the service

Filcare Ltd is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care for 15 people at the time of the inspection. The service is registered to provide support for older people and younger adults who may live with physical disabilities, sensory impairment, mental health needs, dementia, eating disorders, learning disabilities or autism.

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

Right Support:

People were encouraged to be involved in planning how their care needs would be met. 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. Care workers understood the importance of providing respectful and dignified person-centred care tailored to people’s individual needs.

Care workers had received training and demonstrated a clear understanding of how to provide safe and effective care and support. Additional specialist training was provided to enhance care workers’ understanding of people’s medical conditions.

People were safeguarded from abuse and care workers were knowledgeable about how to support people safely. Accidents and incidents were recorded and shared with the wider care team to promote learning.

Right Care:

People had detailed risk assessments and care plans in place to support care workers to provide safe and consistent care and support.

The provider operated a robust recruitment process which helped to ensure people received care and support from care workers who had been safely recruited and inducted into care.

People were supported by caring and kind care workers who knew their likes and dislikes.

Right Culture:

The provider had developed a quality assurance system encompassing all aspects of the service delivery. The registered manager undertook a range of routine checks to satisfy themselves the service was performing safely and in line with regulation.

The provider and management team had developed an open and inclusive culture in the service. They empowered the care team to truly promote people’s individuality, protected their rights and supported care workers to develop and flourish.

We received positive feedback from people, their relatives and staff about the management team. Everyone we spoke with, including external professionals, said the management team were approachable and responsive.

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 03 May 2022 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.