Archived: Lewisham Office Also known as Eleanor Nursing and Social Care Limited - Lewisham Office

Updated 6 August 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 checked 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 4 June 2015. It was carried out by one inspector. The provider was given 48 hours’ notice because we needed to be sure that managers would be available when we visited. We reviewed the information we had received about the service. Before the inspection we asked the provider to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. The provider did not complete this form but did send us details of people who use the service. We sent out questionnaires to people who use the service and received 14 responses. We used this information to plan the inspection.

During the inspection we spoke with the branch manager and the operational manager for the service. We spoke with six members of staff. We read 10 people’s care records and five staff records. We reviewed information on complaints, incidents and safeguarding. We reviewed records on the recruitment, training and supervision of staff.

After the inspection, we spoke with a local authority commissioner and three people’s relatives about their experience of the service.

Updated 6 August 2015

Lewisham Office, also known as Eleanor Nursing and Social Care Limited - Lewisham Office, provides people with support, which includes personal care, in their own homes. Our previous inspection of the service took place on 3 December 2013. The service met all the regulations we checked at that time.

We announced this inspection two days in advance. At the time of the inspection 198 people were using the service. Most people’s needs had been assessed by the local authority who had then commissioned the service to provide a specific package of care.

There should be a registered manager for the service. 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.

The current branch manager of the service is not registered with CQC. We are reviewing the situation and will be taking action to ensure there is a registered manager for the service. At this inspection we found the branch manager had not informed CQC of safeguarding concerns. This may have put people at risk because we could not be sure that appropriate action to safeguard people had always been taken. There was breach of CQC regulations. Details of the action we told the provider to take are at the back of the full version of this report.

Staff assessed risks to people and took action to promote their safety. Staff clarified what support people needed with their medicines and planned and delivered appropriate assistance to them. There were enough staff available. People told us the service was reliable and they received their support visits as planned.

The service carried out recruitment checks to ensure staff were suitable. Staff were well trained and received support to carry out their duties. They gave people the support they needed to eat and drink and keep as healthy as possible.

Staff knew how to treat people with dignity and respected their privacy. People told us staff were kind and caring. Staff involved people in planning their care and support Staff delivered people’s support as planned. They regularly checked whether people’s needs had changed so that, if necessary, their support arrangements could be amended. People understood how to make a complaint and the managers of the service had responded to complaints appropriately.

Staff asked people to complete questionnaires about the service to check whether there were any areas for improvement. Staff told us the branch manager was open and supportive. A local authority commissioner told us the service was reliable and effective in meeting people’s support needs.