Carewatch Coventry is a domiciliary care agency registered to provide personal care to people living in their own home. At the time of our inspection visit the service provided personal care to 42 people.

The office visit took place on 11 October 2017 and was announced. We told the provider 48 hours before the visit we were coming so they could arrange to be there and arrange for staff to be available to talk with us about the service.

A requirement of the provider’s registration is that they have a registered manager. 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 was a registered manager for the service at the time of our inspection.

Prior to our inspection visit we received concerns from three relatives about the care and support provided to their family members. These were about inconsistent care staff and the time they visited. People we contacted during our inspection reported similar concerns. We reviewed people’s concerns during our inspection.

There were enough staff to provide the care and support people required. However, people had different experiences in the punctuality and continuity of care staff. Some people said they received care from staff they knew well and who arrived around the time expected. Others had experienced late and missed calls and their regular care staff had been changed. The provider and managers were aware of people’s concerns and had taken action to ensure people were allocated regular care staff who arrived around the time expected. All the people we spoke with said care staff stayed long enough to provide the care they required.

The provider and registered manager told us, the disruption to the service people had received during the summer months was due to an unprecedented amount of staff sickness and the recent expansion of the service. They assured us this had been resolved.

People said they felt safe using the service and staff understood how to keep people safe from abuse. There were processes to minimise risks to people’s safety. These included procedures to manage identified risks with people’s care and for managing people’s medicines safely. The suitability of staff was checked during recruitment procedures to make sure they were safe to work with people who used the service.

The managers and staff followed the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA). Staff respected decisions people made about their care and gained people’s consent before they provided personal care.

Staff received an induction when they started working for the service and completed training to support them in meeting people’s needs effectively. Most people said staff had the right skills to provide the care they required. People told us they received care from staff that were friendly and caring, and who treated them with dignity and respect.

Care staff understood people’s needs and preferences, as they had time to talk with people and read their care plans. Care plans and staff work schedules provided guidance for staff about people’s care needs and instructions of what they needed to do on each visit.

Staff felt supported to do their work effectively and said the managers were approachable and knowledgeable. There was an ‘out of hours’ on call system, which ensured management support and advice was always available for staff.

People knew how to complain and information about making a complaint was available for people. People and staff knew they could raise any concerns or issues with the management team, although some people told us they did not always feel listened to.

The provider’s quality monitoring system included asking people for their views about the quality of the service. This was thro

Carewatch Coventry is a domiciliary care agency which provides personal care support to people in their own homes. At the time of our visit the agency supported 49 people with personal care.

We visited the offices of Carewatch Coventry on 11 September 2015. We told the provider 48 hours before the visit we were coming so they could arrange for staff to be available to talk with us about the service.

The service has a registered manager. 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.

People and their relatives told us they felt safe using the service. Care workers understood how to protect people from abuse. There were processes to minimise risks to people’s safety; these included procedures to manage identified risks with people’s care and for managing people’s medicines safely. Checks were carried out prior to care workers starting work to ensure their suitability to work with people who used the service.

The managers understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA), and care workers gained people’s consent before they provided personal care.

People who required support had enough to eat and drink during the day and were assisted to manage their health needs, if this was part of their care plan.

Most people had consistent care workers who usually arrived on time and stayed the agreed length of time. Care workers received an induction and a programme of training to support them in meeting people’s needs effectively. People told us care workers were kind and caring and had the right skills and experience to provide the care and support they required.

Care plans and risk assessments contained relevant information for care workers to help them provide the personalised care people required. People knew how to complain and were able to share their views and opinions about the service they received. Staff were confident they could raise any concerns or issues with the provider and managers, knowing they would be listened to and acted on.

There were processes to monitor the quality of the service provided and understand the experiences of people who used the service. This was through regular communication with people and staff, returned surveys, spot checks on care workers and a programme of other checks and audits.