We carried out the inspection of Bradford Home Support between 27 October and 24 November 2016. On the 27 October we visited Bradford Home Support’s offices and made phone calls to people, their relatives and staff on the 07 October and 24 November 2016. At the time of our inspection, there were 350 people using the service. This was an announced inspection which meant we gave the provider 48 hours’ notice of our visit.

Bradford Home Support is registered to provide personal care and support to people at home. The service was also known as the Bradford Enablement Support Team (B.E.S.T). The service operates throughout the Bradford, Shipley and Keighley districts.

The service had a registered manager in place at the time of our inspection. 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. The registered manager was present throughout the inspection.

The service was flexible as the number of people that received personal care varied at any given point. This was due to referrals from GPs and other community healthcare professionals. The service also operated 24 hours a day every day and people, relatives, staff and healthcare professionals could telephone the office at any time to receive support.

The service worked in conjunction with a multidisciplinary team to ensure that rehabilitation was fully implemented into people's care packages. This joint working enabled people to regain their independence as quickly as possible.

We found the Bradford Home Support Team completed an initial assessment and care planning process which ensured people's care was detailed and specific to them. People had any personal or environmental risks assessed to keep people and staff safe.

Staff we spoke with were professional and caring and enjoyed working with people who used the service. There were sufficient staff to meet people's needs at all times and the service had a robust method of deployment of staff.

Staff received an induction, training, supervision and performance appraisal for their roles. The service had supported staff through national qualifications. Staff received regular supervision with their line managers and were able to set and achieve their own employment goals.

Recruitment and selection of new staff members was robust and ensured safety for people who used the service.

We found staff were kind and generous. People's comments mirrored our findings from the inspection. Staff told us they respected people's privacy and dignity and ensured that life in their homes was as close as possible to being independent. People had regular opportunities to provide feedback to the service and also have their say in how things operated.

Consent was gained from people before care was commenced and people's right to refuse care was respected.

People were able to share their compliments, concerns and complaints in an open and transparent manner. Where feedback was provided by people or relatives, management would undertake necessary investigations, make changes to their care package and report back to the person who complained.

People's and their relatives’ opinions of the care provided was consistently positive. People's medicines were administered, stored and documented appropriately.

The service had a goal of people gaining their independence in six weeks. Evidence from the inspection showed in the majority of cases people were enabled to stay in their own home.

All of the people, relatives and staff we spoke with as part of the inspection told us the service was well-led. They felt the registered manager took time to listen and would take action to make improvements when needed.

People felt management were approachable and had a visible presence

Bradford Home Support is the amalgamation of all of the City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council home care services. The service is split into five geographical areas which were managed from the main office and two satellite offices. During this inspection we only visited the main office at Cottingley. Where we reviewed peoples care records and talked to the Registered Manager, two home care managers, three senior care and nine care staff. We also telephoned 11 people using the service and two relatives to find out their views.

People using the service and their relatives all said they were satisfied with the service they received. They made very positive comments saying they were “Incredibly satisfied” and they were ”More than satisfied” and describing the service as ”Excellent”. They all told us the staff were respectful and described them as "Kind" and "Caring". One person described them as "Like friends".

We asked if the service was delivered on time and flexibly, all the people we talked with told us that the times allocated would be changed if they requested and although sometimes it could be late, they understood this was because the staff had to stay longer with another person. They all told us they "Did not mind".

Ten people told us they were aware of how to complain but did not have any complaints about the service.

We talked with 11 people who had used the agency. They told us they were satisfied with the service they had received and the staff were reliable and the times of the visits were consistent. They told us they were satisfied with the care and support they received. One person told us “The carers visit daily. They have been coming for 5 weeks. They are fine. Staff are friendly and talk to me, ask me questions. They record their notes in a care plan. I am well cared for”. Another said “Carers are friendly. I get on with them well. They make it easy to get on with. They ask me before delivering care. They turn up on time. They seem to know how I feel. They care for me well”.

We found staff sought people’s agreement and people were provided with the opportunity to make decisions about their care and treatment. People’s care and treatment needs were assessed before a service was offered and people had experienced care and support which had met their needs. Bradford Home Support also had effective systems in place which identified, assessed and managed the risks to the health, safety and welfare of people who used the service and others.