The inspection took place between 1 and 14 May 2018. Inspection site visits took place on 1 and 14 May 2018. We made telephone calls to staff, people and relatives/advocates on 8 and 11 May 2018. The inspection was announced. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because it is a community based service and we needed to be sure the office would be staffed.

We last inspected the service in February 2017 and rated the service as ‘Requires Improvement’ overall. At the inspection in February 2017 we identified a breach of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014: Regulation 19 (Fit and proper persons employed) and rated the Safe key question as ‘Requires Improvement’.

Following the last inspection, we asked the provider to complete an action plan to show what they would do and by when to improve the key question safe to at least good. At this inspection we found sufficient improvements had not been made in the areas identified at the previous inspection and the service continued not to meet all the fundamental standards we inspected against.

Philip Parkinson Home Care Limited is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes in the community. It provides a service to older adults and younger disabled adults. At the time of the inspection there were 20 people receiving a service.

The service had a registered manager in place. 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.

At this inspection we found that there were breaches of Regulation 17, 19 and 20a of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 and Regulation 18 of the Care Quality Commission (Registration) Regulations 2009. These related to the provider not having a robust recruitment process, some records not being accessible or in place in relation to the service, failure to display the latest performance rating on the provider’s dedicated website and the registered manager failing to notify the Care Quality Commission of incidents regarding abuse.

You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of the report.

People and their relatives/advocate told us people felt safe when receiving help and support from staff. Staff had completed training in safeguarding people and the provider actively raised safeguarding concerns with the local authority.

Environmental risk assessments were in place in relation to people’s own homes. Risks to people’s personal safety and wellbeing were identified but were not always assessed and monitored. We have made a recommendation about this.

People and their relatives/advocates felt there were enough staff to meet people’s needs. They told us they mainly received support from the same staff members. There were mixed views regarding the timeliness of calls but people were satisfied with the reasons why staff were sometimes a little late.

Medicines were managed and administered in a safe way. Medicines Administration Records (MARs) were fully completed. Staff received regular competency checks as well as appropriate training to enable them to administer medicines safely.

Staff received regular training, supervisions and annual appraisals to support them in their roles.

People were supported to meet their nutritional needs and to access a range of healthcare professionals.

People and their relatives/advocates spoke highly of staff and felt the service was caring. Staff treated people with dignity and respect. People were supported to express their views and be involved in making choices and decisions about the service they received.

Care plans were in place for meeting each person's

The inspection took place on 4 and 5 January 2017 and was announced. This was the first inspection of Philip Parkinson Homecare Ltd since a variation to the provider’s registration in October 2015.

Philip Parkinson Homecare Ltd is a domiciliary care agency that provides personal care and support to people living in their own homes. At the time of our inspection, services were being provided to 12, mainly older people, who lived in the Northumberland area.

The service had a registered manager in post. 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.

We found the provider had taken steps to reduce risks during care delivery and safeguard people from harm and abuse. Enough staff were employed to provide people with safe and consistent care. However, a robust recruitment process had not always been followed to check the suitability of new staff.

People were appropriately supported in meeting their health care needs and, where required, in taking their prescribed medicines. Staff assisted people with their dietary requirements where this formed part of their care plan.

The staff were supervised and provided with training to equip them in meeting the needs of the people they cared for. People were given care they had agreed to, that helped them live independently and, where applicable, supported their informal carers.

Staff had developed caring relationships with people and their families. We were told that workers were friendly in their approach, treated people with respect and promoted their dignity. People were supported to express their views and be involved in making choices and decisions about the service they received.

Care plans for meeting each person’s individual needs were in place. Reviews were held to consult people and their representatives about their care and support. The staff were vigilant towards people’s well-being and reported any changes in their needs.

Arrangements were made to seek feedback about the service and act on any complaints. Staff performance was monitored to ensure good practice standards were met. The management of the service was mostly appropriate, though we have recommended governance be improved to ensure staff are properly vetted.

We found one breach of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 relating to staff recruitment. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of the report.