16 May 2016
During a routine inspection
This inspection took place on the 16 May 2016 and was announced. This was because the service is a domiciliary care service and we needed to be sure we could meet with people and staff when they would be available to speak with us.
A registered manager was in post at the time of our inspection who had been registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to manage the carrying on of the regulated activity since June 2014. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the CQC 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 told us they liked the staff who supported them and felt safe in their presence. Policies and procedures were in place for staff to follow to ensure that they safeguarded people from harm or abuse and we saw that these were followed in practice. Staff had been trained in safeguarding and were aware of their personal responsibility to safeguard people.
Risks that people faced in their daily lives had been appropriately assessed and were regularly reviewed. Environmental risks in peoples' homes were also assessed and mitigated against. Emergency planning had been carried out and accident and incidents were appropriately managed and analysed to see if preventative measures were needed.
Staffing levels were determined by the number of people in receipt of care and the nature of their needs. Staff told us that staffing levels were well managed and they felt very supported in their roles. They said they received regular training and were inducted, supervised and appraised in line with the provider's policies. Staff recruitment procedures were robust and staff disciplinary measures were in place and applied appropriately. Medicines were well managed.
CQC monitors the application of the Mental Capacity Act (2005) and deprivation of liberty safeguards. The Mental Capacity Act (MCA) was appropriately applied and the provider understood their legal responsibility under this act. They assessed people's capacity when their care commenced and on an on-going basis when necessary.
People were supported to eat and drink healthily and in line with their tastes and preferences. They were involved in menu planning and had lots of choice about the foods they consumed. The ethos of the service was to support people to be as independent as possible and achieve the best possible outcome in line with their own abilities. Staff encouraged people to be independent, they respected their dignity and spoke with them in a professional but respectful manner. People and staff enjoyed good relationships.
Care was person centred and each person had goals and aspirations to work towards. Care was planned and regularly reviewed. Adjustments to peoples' care packages were made as needed. Social inclusion was promoted as people were encouraged and supported to pursue activities of their own choice such as swimming, shopping and football. People had good links with the local community, which staff supported them to access daily.
The culture of the service was positive and open and we received good feedback about the manager and the leadership of the service overall. Good quality assurance systems were in place and these ensured that the provider had a good overview of the service in order to analyse any concerns or issues raised and to drive improvements where necessary. There were no complaints received about this service within the last 12 months prior to our inspection.
Records held within the service were well maintained and confidentially stored.