Starline 2000

Date of assessment: 27 May and 2 June 2025. Starline 2000 is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes. People had medical conditions, mobility and nutrition needs. At the time of the assessment, 6 people who used the service received personal care. Not everyone who used the service received personal care. In this service, the Care Quality Commission can only inspect the service received by people who get support with personal care. This includes help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where people receive such support, we also consider any wider social care provided. The inspection was prompted in part by notification of an incident following which a person using the service their commissioning arrangements were terminated and they later died. This incident is subject to further investigation by CQC as to whether any regulatory action should be taken. As a result, this inspection did not examine the circumstances of the incident. However, the information shared with CQC about the incident indicated potential concerns about the management of risk. This inspection examined those risks. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it. At the time of the assessment, the service was not used by anyone with a learning disability or an autistic person. However, we assessed the care provision under Right Support, Right Care, Right Culture, as it is registered as a specialist service for this population group. At our last inspection the provider had failed to work within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005. This was a breach of Regulation 11 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. At this inspection, we found the provider had made the required improvement and there was no longer a breach of Regulation 11. The registered manager had assessed the capacity of each person to consent to their care and support. People consented before care workers supported them. The provider failed to support care workers adequately to ensure they had appropriate knowledge and skills to meet people’s needs. People had a range of needs; care workers have not received all the specialist trainings. The service was in breach of legal regulation in relation to regulation 18 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. The provider did not have an effective oversight of the service. They did not follow safe recruitment practices and had not ensured appropriate pre-employment checks were completed satisfactorily before care workers were employed. Care delivery logs were not always completed for all tasks. A care worker had worked beyond their contracted 20 hrs a week. Spot checks records were not an accurate reflection of who carried out the spot checks. The management and oversight of the electronic call monitoring (ECM) system was not effective. At our last inspection the provider had failed to operate effective quality assurance process. This was a breach of Regulation 17. At this assessment, we found the provider had remained in breach of Regulation 17 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. We have asked the provider for an action plan in response to the concerns found at this assessment. The registered manager completed risk assessments and risk management plans that included guidance for staff. The provider supported care workers through induction and regular supervision meetings. The registered manager assessed people’s needs to ensure these could be met. People's care plans were reflective of their individual personal care needs, and they were reviewed on a regular basis. Care workers treated people with kindness and respect. Care workers treated people with dignity, and their privacy was respected. They gave people as much choice as possible. The provider enabled people, and their relatives shared feedback about their care.