23 July 2013
During a routine inspection
During our inspection we spoke with nine people using the service, ten staff including the provider, the manager and one of the care supervisors. We also spoke with three people who were either relatives or partners of people receiving care from the agency. All people spoke about the services they received in a positive way and were complimentary about the care workers who supported them. One person told us, 'The care worker is excellent, we'd adopt her if we could!' whilst another said, 'I'm treated with care and dignity by knowledgeable staff'.
People who received a service told us they were treated with dignity and told us they were asked about what care they needed and how it should be delivered. We saw that people had been consulted about their needs and preferences and this was recorded in their care plans. The care plans were routinely reviewed. This showed people's care and welfare needs were supported by care workers who knew how to meet their needs and enabled people to receive care in the way their care plans described.
We saw that all staff received training relevant to their role which reduced the risk of vulnerable people being neglected or abused. We observed safe working practices such as properties being left secure and safe moving and handling of people throughout our inspection. Staff recruitment met the requirements of the providers' policy and ensured that people were checked to ensure they were suitable for working with vulnerable people before they commenced employment. The care workers we spoke with spoke positively about working for the provider.
The provider routinely monitored and audited the services they provided and regularly sought the views of people using the service. People told us about a customer survey they had just completed and we saw how the provider gathered people's views during their care review meetings. Complaints were recorded and responded to appropriately whether they were informally raised during care delivery or through more formal processes.