Agency and Temporary Staff Governance Audit – Care Homes

Q1 | Unanswered

Governance: Is there a current policy for agency and temporary staffing with clear responsibilities for supplier approval, booking, checks, induction, supervision and escalation?

Q2 | Unanswered

Supplier assurance: Does the home assess the reliability of agencies before use and review whether their recruitment, vetting and competence assurances remain robust?

Q3 | Unanswered

Written arrangements: Do supplier agreements clearly describe required checks, role expectations, information sharing, incident reporting, replacement arrangements and responsibilities?

Q4 | Unanswered

Booking decisions: Are temporary staff booked against assessed resident needs, required skills and safe staffing arrangements, with bookings authorised and the reasons recorded?

Q5 | Unanswered

Worker records: Is there an accurate record of each temporary worker, their agency or engagement route, role, shifts, assurance information and deployment decisions?

Q6 | Unanswered

Identity on arrival: Is the identity of the person arriving checked against the booked worker and verified assurance information, with substitutions or discrepancies resolved before deployment?

Q7 | Unanswered

Recruitment checks: Before relevant work starts, does the home hold satisfactory evidence of required suitability checks equivalent to those for permanent staff, including references and employment-history checks?

Q8 | Unanswered

DBS assurance: Is appropriate DBS and legally eligible barred-list assurance obtained for the actual role, with current renewal or Update Service arrangements and any relevant concerns addressed?

Q9 | Unanswered

Registration: Where required, is Social Care Wales or other professional registration checked directly, with applicable deadlines, status and restrictions considered before duties are allocated?

Q10 | Unanswered

Employment responsibilities: Are responsibility for right-to-work and other employer checks clear for each engagement route, with required checks completed and suitable assurance available?

Q11 | Unanswered

Skills matching: Are qualifications, experience and practical competence matched to the booked role and residents' needs, rather than assuming suitability from a job title alone?

Q12 | Unanswered

Incomplete assurance: Are workers withheld from relevant duties when required evidence is missing or unsatisfactory, with safe cover and escalation arranged instead of bypassing checks?

Q13 | Unanswered

Local introduction: Before relevant duties, do workers receive a documented introduction to the statement of purpose, core policies, layout and management or supervision arrangements?

Q14 | Unanswered

Resident information: Do workers receive the current personal-plan information, preferences, communication needs and risk instructions necessary for their allocated residents?

Q15 | Unanswered

Emergency readiness: Do workers know local fire, evacuation, emergency call-out and urgent clinical escalation arrangements, with understanding checked?

Q16 | Unanswered

Safeguarding and conduct: Are temporary workers briefed on safeguarding, respectful care, professional boundaries, whistleblowing and how to report concerns at the home?

Q17 | Unanswered

Shift oversight: Is a named competent person available to supervise and support temporary staff, with responsibilities and escalation routes clear throughout the shift?

Q18 | Unanswered

Task boundaries: Are limits on medicines, specialist equipment and delegated healthcare tasks recorded, with local competence checks and authorisation before such duties are assigned?

Q19 | Unanswered

Team integration: Are temporary workers included in relevant handovers, allocation discussions and safety briefings, with current instructions and changes understood?

Q20 | Unanswered

Continuity: Are repeat bookings, familiar workers or other arrangements used where appropriate to support continuity, with the effects of changing staff on residents reviewed?

Q21 | Unanswered

Resident experience: Are workers introduced appropriately to residents, with language and communication support and feedback about confidence, dignity and continuity considered?

Q22 | Unanswered

Skill mix and workload: Do actual shifts provide suitable skill mix and support for unfamiliar workers, with risks from excessive temporary staffing, workload or fatigue assessed and addressed?

Q23 | Unanswered

Attendance and contingency: Are late arrival, non-attendance, early departure or unsuitable replacements identified promptly, with cover and escalation maintaining safe care?

Q24 | Unanswered

Access and confidentiality: Do workers have appropriate individual access to required records and systems, with confidentiality understood and access removed when no longer needed?

Q25 | Unanswered

Care recording: Are temporary workers' entries accurate, timely and attributable, with completion of allocated care checked and omissions or outstanding actions handed over?

Q26 | Unanswered

Practice feedback: Is temporary staff practice monitored through proportionate observation and feedback, with concerns addressed promptly and positive or corrective feedback shared appropriately?

Q27 | Unanswered

Incidents and complaints: Are incidents, complaints or safeguarding concerns involving temporary workers recorded and investigated, with agency communication and required referrals or notifications?

Q28 | Unanswered

Unsafe workers: Are deployment restrictions or decisions not to rebook communicated securely to authorised people, with checks preventing unintended return and referral duties considered?

Q29 | Unanswered

Repeat-worker review: For recurring or longer-term temporary workers, are assurance, induction and competence kept current, with ongoing supervision and support responsibilities agreed?

Q30 | Unanswered

Supplier performance: Are agency reliability, assurance gaps, cancellations and care concerns reviewed, with corrective action or supplier changes where standards are not met?

Q31 | Unanswered

Assurance audits: Are temporary staffing records sampled against actual shifts, required checks and resident outcomes, with discrepancies and overdue actions followed through?

Q32 | Unanswered

Leadership review: Do managers and the Responsible Individual review temporary staffing dependence, continuity risks and resource needs, with improvement actions included in the quality of care review?