8 and 14 April 2015
During a routine inspection
Lavender Support Services Limited is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of our inspection the service provided approximately 50 packages of personal care and support.
The inspection took place on 8 and 14 April 2015.
The service had a registered manager. 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 felt safe and were treated well by staff. Staff had a good understanding of how to identify abuse, and knew how to respond appropriately to any concerns to keep people safe.
Staff managed risks to promote people’s safety, and balanced these against people’s right to take risks and remain independent.
Staff numbers were based upon the amount of care that people required, in conjunction with their assessed dependency levels.
Recruitment procedures were in place to ensure that only people who were considered suitable worked within the service.
Systems were in place to ensure that medicines were administered and handled safely.
There was an induction programme for new staff which prepared them for their role. Staff were provided with a range of training to help them to carry out their roles effectively. They had regular supervision meetings with their manager and annual appraisals to support them to meet people’s needs.
Staff were meeting the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005.
People were supported to attend health appointments when required and to see social care professionals as and when they needed. Prompt action was taken in response to illness or changes in people’s physical and mental health.
Staff treated people with kindness and compassion and cared for them according to their individual needs. Staff had a good understanding of people’s needs and preferences and we received positive feedback from relatives about the service provided by care workers.
Staff were knowledgeable about the specific needs of the people in their care. They responded well to people’s personal views and preferences.
People knew how to make a complaint if they needed to and were confident that the service would listen to them.
The registered manager and senior staff consistently monitored and reviewed the quality of care people received and encouraged feedback from people and their representatives. This was used to identify, plan and make improvements to the service.