Archived: Northamptonshire Community Services

Updated 14 December 2016

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 announced inspection took place on 10 and 11 November 2016 and was undertaken by one inspector. The provider was given 24 hours’ notice because the location provides a domiciliary care service and we needed to be sure someone would be available.

Before the inspection we checked the information we held about the service including statutory notifications. A notification is information about important events which the provider is required to send us by law.

We contacted the health and social care commissioners who help place and monitor the care of people living in the home.

During the inspection we spoke with the three people using the service, two family members, two care staff, two service co-ordinators and two deputy managers. The registered manager was on annual leave at the time of the inspection.

We reviewed the care records of the four people who used the service and three staff recruitment files. We also reviewed records relating to the management and quality assurance of the service.

Updated 14 December 2016

This inspection took place on the 10 and 11 November 2016 and was announced. The service is registered to provide personal care to people in their own homes or shared housing when they are unable to manage their own care. At the time of the inspection there were nine people using the service.

There was a registered manager in post at the time of our inspection. 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.

People were actively involved in decisions about their care and support needs; however, there was inconsistency in the approach taken to supporting those people who may lack the capacity to consent to their care. The systems in place to assess people’s capacity for decision making under the Mental Capacity Act were not consistently being followed. The registered manager was aware of this and had already started to take steps to address this at the time of the inspection.

People were supported to take their medicines as prescribed safely; the provider just needed to ensure that the method of recording the administration of medicines was consistent across the service.

People told us that they felt safe in their own home. Staff understood the need to protect people from harm and abuse and knew what action they should take if they had any concerns. Staffing levels ensured that people received the support they required at the times they needed. We observed that on the day of our inspection there were sufficient staff to meet the needs of the people they were supporting. The recruitment practice protected people from being cared for by staff that were unsuitable to work in their home.

Care records contained risk assessments to protect people from identified risks and help to keep them safe. They gave information for staff on the identified risk and informed staff on the measures to take to minimise any risks. People were supported to maintain good health and had access to healthcare services when needed.

Care plans were in place detailing how people wished to be supported and people were involved in making decisions about their support. People participated in a range of activities both in their own home and in the community and received the support they needed to help them do this.

Staff had good relationships with the people who they supported. Complaints were appropriately investigated and action was taken to make improvements to the service when this was found to be necessary. The registered manager was approachable and had systems in place to monitor the quality of the service provided. Staff and people were confident that issues would be addressed and that any concerns they had would be listened to.