Cheshire Homecare Services Limited

Updated 21 March 2018

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

The inspection took place on 19 and 20 February and was announced.

The inspection team consisted of two adult social care inspectors and an ‘Expert by Experience’. An ‘Expert by Experience’ is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Before the inspection visit we reviewed the information which was held about Cheshire Homecare services Ltd. This included notifications we had received from the registered provider such as incidents which had occurred in relation to the people who were receiving care. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send to us by law.

A Provider Information Return (PIR) was also submitted and reviewed prior to the inspection. This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give us key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We also contacted commissioners and the local authority prior to the inspection. We used all of this information to plan how the inspection should be conducted.

During the inspection we spoke with the registered provider, four members of staff, two people who were receiving care and five relatives.

During the inspection we also spent time reviewing specific records and documents. These included four care records of people who were receiving care, five staff personnel files, recruitment practices, staff training records, medication administration records and audits, complaints, accidents and incidents, policies and procedures and other records relating to the management of the service.

Updated 21 March 2018

The inspection took place on 19 and 20 February, 2018 and was announced.

Cheshire Homecare Services Ltd is a large domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats in the community. At the time of the inspection the registered provider was providing support to 101 people.

At the last inspection, which took place in August, 2015 the service was ‘Good’.

At this inspection we found the service remained ‘Good’ and continued to meet all of the essential standards.

There was a registered manager at the time of the inspection. 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.

During this inspection we reviewed care plans and risk assessments. Care plans were detailed, consistent and contained up to date information. Risk assessments were regularly reviewed and were updated accordingly.

Medication management systems were in place. Medication was only administered by staff who had received the appropriate training. Regular medication audits were taking place and people received all medication which was prescribed to them.

The registered provider operated within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). People who were receiving support from the registered provider provided ‘consent’ to receive care and support and were not being unlawfully restricted.

Recruitment processes were safely and effectively managed. The necessary recruitment checks had been completed, suitable references had been sought and Disclosure and Barring System checks (DBS) were in place for all staff.

Staff training, learning and development opportunities were reviewed during the inspection. Staff expressed that they were supported in their roles and had completed the necessary training in order to effectively carry out their roles.

We reviewed how people’s nutrition and hydration was supported. Staff were familiar with peoples’ preferences and people's likes and dislikes were well known amongst the staff team.

There was a formal complaints policy in place. At the time of the inspection there were no complaints being investigated.

We reviewed ‘Safeguarding’ and ‘whistleblowing’ procedures that the registered provider had in place. Staff explained their understanding of what ‘safeguarding’ and ‘whistleblowing’ meant and the actions they would take if they were presented with any concerns.

People and relatives we spoke with during the inspection all provided us with positive feedback about the quality and standard of care being provided.

Health and safety processes and procedures were reviewed. Audit tools and checks were regularly being completed and the standard and quality of care was being monitored and regularly assessed.