Augusta Care Limited

Updated 1 June 2022

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 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

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

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 not a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure that the provider or manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 4 May 2022 and ended on 25 May 2022. We visited the location’s office on 23 May 2022.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work 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 spoke with ten people who used the service and two relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with ten members of staff including the manager and nominated individual. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider, service managers, team leaders and support workers

We reviewed one person’s care and risk assessment records. We looked at numerous incident records, compliments and complaint records. We looked at three staff files in relation to recruitment. We reviewed a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures.

Updated 1 June 2022

About the service

Augusta Care Limited is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes and flats and supported living houses; it provides a service to older adults and younger adults.

This service provides personal care and support to some people living in supported living settings so that they can live as independently as possible. People's care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people's personal care and support.

At the time of the inspection personal care was being provided to 72 people. Not everyone using Augusta Care Limited receives the regulated activity; CQC inspects the service being received by people provided with 'personal care', help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do, we also take into account any wider social care provided.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People felt safe using the service and staff understood what their responsibilities were in relation to keeping people safe. One person said, “It’s fine. I love it here.” People had risks associated with their health and wellbeing, assessed and managed to ensure they received personal care and support safely. Staff administered people's medicines safely and prevented people from the risk of cross infection. The service worked in partnership with people, relatives and other agencies to support people's good health and well-being and provide consistent care.

People and their relatives spoke positively of the service and had opportunities to provide feedback and action was taken to address issues which were raised. A person said, "I have no complaints but know how to do that. I wouldn't be worried." Systems were in place to assess and monitor the quality and delivery of care to people. The nominated individual and manager were committed to providing good care to support people to achieve the best possible outcomes.

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. One person said, “I go to the shops with staff. I do my own washing, make food, prepare a sandwich with staff watching.” Another person told us, “I’m free to go out when I want. I choose what I do.” Right support, right care, right culture is the statutory guidance which supports CQC to make assessments and judgements about services providing support to people with a learning disability and/or autistic people.

The service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of Right support, right care, right culture.

Right support: The support provided by staff focused on ensuring people had choice, control and were encouraged to be as independent as possible.

Right care: People were treated as individuals and the support provided by staff promoted their privacy, dignity and human rights. Staff understood their responsibilities to respect people's human rights, including their right to privacy, confidentiality and to promote their independence.

Right culture: The registered manager, and support staff, all displayed values which prioritised supporting people to live confident, inclusive and empowered lives.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 10 April 2018).

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about the management of incidents and staffing levels. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Augusta Care Company on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

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