As part of the inspection we had telephone discussions with six people who received a service to ask their views on the quality of the service that they received from the agency. We also spoke with five staff, the manager and the care coordinator. On the day of our visit to the office we reviewed care files, staff recruitment files and looked at systems in place for monitoring the service provided.Everyone we spoke with told us that they were very satisfied with the care and support that they received. People said that they felt involved and consulted in relation to how they received their support. People said that staff knew how to meet their needs and listened to them when they expressed their preferences.
People told us that staff were flexible, caring and kind. We were told that staff arrived when they were expected and always stayed their allocated amount of time.
Everyone we spoke with said that the manager had recently visited them and asked if they were satisfied with the service. People said that they would contact the office if they had any worries or concerns and that the manager and office staff were easy to talk to and listened to them. We saw that improvements had been made to the service following feedback from people.
Care plans and risk assessments were in the process of being reviewed although they were seen to contain essential information required for staff to effectively support people. Staff told us that they were useful documents to identify what care and support needs people had.
Risks associated with providing individualised care and support were seen on care files and staff understood why they were completed. Relatives told us that they had been involved in developing these documents to ensure people's safety and wellbeing.
We looked at how the agency recruited its staff and found that good systems were in place to ensure that people were checked for suitability prior to their appointment. Staff told us that they received a good induction that gave them the knowledge and skills required to carry out their roles effectively. People told us that they were supported by a knowledgeable and well trained staff team who knew their care and support needs well.
People were protected because staff were confident to recognise and report abuse. The agency was aware of its responsibility to refer allegations to the local authority safeguarding team to so that any allegations could be investigated openly and as part of a multi agency team.
The agency effectively ensured that people's views were considered and listened to in relation to the running of the service. The organisation had a range of quality monitoring tools in place to ensure that they maintained good quality care.