Alpha-Imperial Private Ltd

Updated 23 November 2023

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

This inspection was carried out by 1 inspector.

Service and service type

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

Registered manager

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided. At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 2 days’ notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure that the registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection. We also gave time for the registered manager to send us inspection information, so we did not have to spend an extended amount of time in the office of the service.

Inspection activity started on 30 October 2023 and ended on 31 October 2023. We visited the office location on 31 October 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service and we sought feedback from the local authority.

During the inspection

We spoke with 4 people who used the service and 2 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 3 care staff and the registered manager. We reviewed a range of records. This included 4 care records. We looked at 3 staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. We also reviewed a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the registered manager to validate evidence found, which was sent to us following the site visit.

Updated 23 November 2023

About the service

Alpha-Imperial Private Ltd is a domiciliary care agency, providing personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of inspection, 26 people were using the service. 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.

At the time of the inspection, the location did not care or support for anyone with a learning disability or autistic people. 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.

The provider and registered manager had addressed concerns we previously identified at the last inspection. Safe recruitment practices were in place to ensure only suitable staff worked at the service. Systems and processes had been put into place to improve the oversight at the service.

People and their relatives were very satisfied with the personal care staff provided. They said they were treated with respect and dignity and staff had a very caring and friendly approach to them. They said they had very good relationships with staff. Staff respected people's privacy and encouraged them to maintain their independence and do as much for themselves as they wanted to.

Details of how to reduce risks to people's safety were included in people's care plans. Care plans reflected people’s individual needs. Enough staff were employed to meet people's needs. People and relatives said safe care was provided, with people protected against abuse, neglect and discrimination.

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.

People and relatives were aware of how to approach the provider to raise concerns or complaints. The registered manager understood their responsibilities and worked in an open and transparent way.

However, we found staff did not always attend calls on time to provide people with the personal care they needed. The registered manager acted on this finding promptly to ensure this was not repeated.

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

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on length of time since last inspection. This inspection was planned based on the information we held on the service.

The overall rating for the service has improved to good based on the findings of this inspection.

Rating at last inspection

This is the 3rd inspection for the service. The last inspection was in November 2019 when the service was rated requires improvement.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our reinspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.