Helping Hands Exmouth

Updated 12 March 2020

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 Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector 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.

Service and service type

The service did not have a registered manager but two managers had been recently recruited and both planned to apply to register with the Care Quality Commission. This meant the provider is legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

What we did: Before the inspection, we reviewed relevant information we had about the service, including any notifications of safeguarding or incidents affecting the safety and wellbeing of people. A notification is information about important events, which the provider is required to tell us about by law. We checked the last inspection report and contacted the local authority for information.

The service completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). A PIR is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what it does well and any improvements they plan to make. However, this had been supplied by the previous manager, who had left the service. The provider’s representative, called the Nominated Individual, said this document had not been shared with them. We provided a copy to them and they confirmed it was accurate.

During the inspection, we visited four people in their own home, spoke with six other people who used the service, six relatives, nine staff members, two managers and the nominated individual. We also sent emails to 17 staff to gain feedback on the service; we received a response from three staff. We reviewed six people’s care records, including assessments, staff files, records of accidents, incidents and complaints, audits and quality assurance reports.

Updated 12 March 2020

About the service:

Helping Hands Exmouth is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to provide personal care to people within their own homes. At the time of our inspection, the service was providing personal care and support to 140 people. The service provided care in Exmouth, Cullompton and Honiton.

People’s experience of using this service:

Despite staff changes at the service, the feedback from people who used the services was consistently positive about the quality of their care. People and their relatives were equally positive about the approach of the care workers. For example, they said care workers, “Always bright, cheerful, chatting. It’s quite jolly” and “…they chat and make her laugh. Sit and chat, make a joke, they relate to her.”

Following a new provider buying the service in March 2019, some staff had chosen to leave. However, there was a core group of staff who remained and provided stability during a period of change. New staff were being recruited. Following the departure of a manager appointed by the previous provider, the new provider decided to appoint two new full-time managers, a decision which had been greeted favourably by staff. Work was in progress to make improvements to ensure consistency in the quality of person-centred information in care, including how fluids were recorded and monitored. They had also chosen to be actively involved in concerns and complaints at an early stage in recognition of the need to improve how complaints were managed. However, these changes needed to be embedded and sustained.

People said they felt safe because the staff group were caring and reliable. People continued to be

supported by staff who respected their privacy and dignity. Staff relationships with the people they

supported continued to be caring and supportive. Staffing arrangements were flexible to meet people's individual needs and to respond to changes.

Risk assessments identified when people could be at risk and covered people's physical and mental health needs and the environment they lived in. Feedback from people and staff confirmed the provider recruited staff who suited the caring values of the service and recognised the importance of team work to provide consistent and safe care. People were protected from abuse because staff understood their safeguarding responsibilities.

People were supported by staff who were skilled and understood their needs. Staff were confident about the care they delivered and understood how they contributed to people's health and wellbeing. Referrals were appropriately made to health care services when people's needs changed. People were supported to maintain good health and had access to appropriate services, which ensured they received ongoing healthcare support. Medicine administration was safe.

There was a consistent approach to gain people's consent to care and treatment in line with requirements of the legislation and guidance. Information was in place to ensure people's legal rights were protected. Senior staff assisted the management team with reviews and spot checks to ensure people received a good quality service. Feedback from people using the service and quality assurance records showed this had been achieved.

Rating at last inspection: This service was last inspected in 2017, when it was rated as Outstanding (published April 2017) as an overall rating. At this inspection, the service was rated as Good.

Why we inspected: This inspection was scheduled for follow up based on the last report rating.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor the intelligence we receive about the service. 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