Archived: Wellingborough/East Northants START

Updated 18 December 2015

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.

This inspection took place on 29 and 30 October 2015 and was announced. The provider was given 48 hours’ notice because the location provides a domiciliary care service and we needed to be sure that the registered manager would be in to meet with us.

The inspection team comprised of one inspector.

Prior to this inspection we reviewed information we held about the service including statutory notifications that had been submitted. Statutory notifications include information about important events which the provider is required to send us by law. We contacted the local authority that commissioned the service to obtain their views.

We used a number of different methods to help us understand the experiences of people using the service. We visited one person and their relative in their home to talk about the care and re-ablement support they received. We spoke with four people who used the service and five relatives in order to gain their views about the quality of the service provided. We also spoke with three care staff, a re-ablement support worker and the registered manager to determine whether the service had robust quality systems in place.

We reviewed care records relating to four people who used the service and four staff files that contained information about recruitment, induction, training, supervisions and appraisals. We also looked at further records relating to the management of the service including quality audits.

Updated 18 December 2015

This inspection took place on 29 and 30 October 2015.

The Wellingborough/East Northants START service is a re-ablement service for people to manage independently at home following discharge from hospital. It provides short-term intensive support for people to work towards independence. This service is provided for a maximum of six weeks. The agency does not provide any overnight care. There were 30 people using this service when we visited.

The service had a registered manager. 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.

Staff had not received up to date training to ensure they were qualified, competent and skilled to deliver care or treatment to service users.

Staff were knowledgeable about the risks of abuse and reporting procedures. We saw that risks to people’s safety had been assessed and were linked to their care plans. Pre-employment checks were completed on staff before they were judged to be suitable to look after people at the service.

Medicines were stored, administered and recorded safely and correctly.

People told us that staff always asked for their consent before undertaking any task. They were supported to eat and drink sufficient amounts to ensure their dietary needs were met. Staff supported people to attend healthcare appointments and liaised with their GP and other healthcare professionals as required.

There were positive relationships between people, their families and members of staff. People and their families were treated with kindness and compassion. The privacy and dignity of people was promoted by staff who treated people with respect. People’s rights in making decisions and suggestions in relation to their support and care were valued and acted on.

People received care that was responsive to their needs and centred around them as individuals. People’s needs were assessed and care plans gave clear guidance on how they were to be supported. Records showed that people and their relatives were involved in the assessment process and review of their care.

There was a process in place so that people’s concerns and complaints were listened to and these were acted upon.

The service was well-led and staff were supported and motivated to do a good job. We saw that people were encouraged to have their say about how the quality of services could be improved and were positive about the leadership provided by the registered manager.

Effective quality assurance systems were in place to obtain feedback, monitor performance and manage risks.