AN Amesbury care agency which manages Wiltshire Council’s Help to Live at Home contract has been told it needs to improve.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) visited Mears Care Limited unannounced in June and July after it was contacted by 23 people who raised complaints.

The CQC report found standards were not being met in five areas, including care and welfare of people who use the service, management of medicines, support of workers, and assessing and monitoring the quality of service provision.

The report said: “Those people who had transferred to Mears Help to Live at Home Wiltshire from other agencies were not receiving a service which met their needs. People had experienced late or missed calls.”

Inspectors spoke to staff who said some people they were visiting they had not met before, and had minimal or no information about their needs.

“The manager was not able to confirm that each person had a support plan and medicine administration record in place,” the report said. “This meant staff did not have the required information to meet people’s needs effectively.”

The report also said some people were “at significant risk of harm” as they were not receiving consistent support with their personal care, eating and drinking, or taking their medicines.

People who use the service told inspectors that when staff did attend, the standard of care they received was very good. “People’s comments indicated staff showed empathy, a good attitude and commitment to their role,” the report said.

The CQC attributed some issues to the fact that Mears had bought two other agencies and were planning to purchase a third, meaning it had “grown significantly in a very short time”.

A Wiltshire Council spokesman said: “We are working very closely with Mears and the Care Quality Commission, as we do with all our providers, to ensure that people are being cared for appropriately.”