About the service: Bagnall Heights Domiciliary Service provides personal care and support to people living in their own homes in a retirement complex. The service was supporting 11 people at the time of the inspection.

People’s experience of using this service:

People using the service and their relatives were very happy with the support provided by Bagnall Heights Domiciliary Service.

People told us staff visited them when they should and provided them with safe care. The provider followed safe processes when recruiting staff and staff understood their responsibilities if they witnessed or suspected abuse. The service managed people’s risks appropriately and managed people’s medicines in a safe way. A minor improvement was needed to medicines documentation and the registered manager made the necessary improvements during the inspection. Staff protected people from the risks associated with poor infection control.

Staff supported people in a way which met their needs. People felt staff had the knowledge and skills to support them well. Staff were happy with the induction they received when they joined the service. They completed the provider’s required training, which was updated regularly. Staff completed mental capacity assessments in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and consulted people’s relatives when people were unable to make decisions about their care. Staff supported people to meet their nutrition, hydration and healthcare needs and referred people to community professionals when they needed extra support.

People liked the staff who supported them and told us staff were caring and respectful. Staff considered people’s diversity and people received any support they needed with their communication needs. Staff respected people’s right to privacy and dignity and encouraged people to be independent when it was safe to do so. People told us staff discussed their care needs with them and they were involved in decisions about their care. The provider ensured information was available about local advocacy services.

Staff provided people with care that reflected their needs and preferences. Staff created individualised care plans and risk assessments, which they updated when people’s needs or risks changed. People were supported by a familiar staff who knew them and how they liked to be supported. Staff offered people choices and encouraged them to make decisions about their support. No formal complaints had been received by the service. We saw evidence that the registered manager dealt with minor concerns appropriately.

People and their relatives were happy with how the service was being managed. We found evidence the service was providing people with person centred, high quality care. Staff liked working at the service and told us they felt well supported by the registered manager and deputy manager. The service sought regular feedback from people about the care provided. People expressed a high level of satisfaction with the support they received. The registered manager and deputy manager completed regular checks of many aspects of the service, including medicines, concerns, accidents and care documentation. The checks completed were effective in ensuring the service maintained appropriate levels of quality and safety.

Rating at last inspection: This was our first inspection of the service.

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk