All about U Care Services is a domiciliary care agency (DCA) which provides care and support to people in their own homes. At the time of our inspection there were 12 people using the service.

The inspection was announced and took place on 25 October 2017 with follow up phone calls to staff and people who used the service on 27 October 2017. We gave the service 48 hours' notice that we would be inspecting as we needed to be sure that the registered manager would be available. At the time of inspection there was a registered manager in post. 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People had risk assessments and management plans in place which provided guidance to staff on how to provide care in order to prevent or minimise the risk of people coming to harm. However, these assessments were generic and did not always identify and record specific risks to each individual.

We made a recommendation that the provider review their risk assessment and recording process.

The current system for monitoring late or missed visits by care staff was not robust. The provider agreed to review their system for monitoring care visits to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all of the people who used the service.

People who required support with medicines were assisted by staff who were trained and assessed as competent to give medicines safely. However, recording practices were inconsistent and improvements were required to demonstrate that people had received their medicines as prescribed.

We made a recommendation that the provider review their system for recording and auditing people’s medicine administration records.

People were protected from harm by staff who understood their safeguarding responsibilities. Staff recognised the signs of abuse and knew what action to take if abuse was suspected. Staff were aware of the whistle-blowing policy and felt confident to raise concerns if necessary.

There were systems in place to ensure the safe recruitment of staff and sufficient numbers of staff were deployed to safely meet people's needs.

Staff received an induction and ongoing training to equip them with the knowledge and skills to care and support people effectively. Observations were carried out to monitor and assess staff competency.

Staff felt well supported and received bi-annual appraisals of their practice. Supervision was provided to staff by the registered manager but this was informal and had not been documented.

We made a recommendation that the provider review their current method of supervising staff.

The service supported people to make choices and exercise control over their lives. People’s family members or representatives were included in the decision-making process where appropriate.

Where people were assisted at mealtimes, they were supported to have enough to eat and drink which reflected their preferences and met any health needs. The service liaised with health and social care professionals when concerns were raised about people's health and wellbeing.

Staff were kind and caring, knew people well and treated them with dignity and respect. The service adopted a person-centred approach and care was tailored to meet people's individual needs. People were involved in the care planning process and in decisions about their care and treatment.

There were systems in place to support people to make a complaint or raise concerns about the service. Feedback from people who used the service was sought and acted upon to improve the service people received.

Staff enjoyed working at the service and felt well supported by the management team who they found approachable and accessible.

The registered manager was ‘hands-on’ and completed

We carried out an announced inspection of this service on 20 July 2016, and we made telephone calls to people who used the service and staff on 26 and 28 July 2016.

All about U care services Ltd is a community based service providing home care support for people living in their own homes. At the time of this inspection, there were 18 people using the service.

The service has a registered manager in place. 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.

There were some risk assessments in place that gave guidance to staff on how risks to people could be minimised and how to safeguard people from the risk of possible harm. However these did not cover all areas of risk.

The provider had recruitment processes in place but there was not always sufficient staff to support people. Staff understood their roles and responsibilities and would seek people’s consent before they provided any care or support. Staff received supervision and support, and had been trained to meet people’s individual needs.

People were supported by caring and respectful staff who they said knew them well. Staff also said that they were given the opportunity to get to know the people they supported. Relatives we spoke with described the staff as pleasant and lovely. However due to shortage of staff the provider could not always respond to people’s needs.

People’s needs had been assessed, and care plans took account of their individual preferences, and choices. Staff supported people when required to attend health care visits such as GP appointments and hospital visits.

The provider had a formal process for handling complaints and concerns. They encouraged feedback from people and acted on the comments received to continually improve the quality of the service. The provider also had effective quality monitoring processes in place to ensure that they were meeting the required standards of care.