We carried out an unannounced inspection of the service on 23 December 2015. Compassion Care is a domiciliary care service which provides personal care and support to people in their own home across the UK.

There was a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). 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 felt safe and were supported by staff who knew how to keep them safe and understood their responsibilities to protect people from the risk of abuse. Risks to people’s health and safety were managed and plans were in place to identify and reduce the risk to people’s safety. There were sufficient numbers of staff to meet people’s care needs and staff were recruited safely. People received the level of support they required to safely manage their medicines.

People were supported by staff who received appropriate induction, training, supervision and appraisal. Staff were fully supported by management. People’s rights were protected under the Mental Capacity Act 2005. People received the assistance they required to have enough to eat and drink. External professionals were involved in people’s care as appropriate.

People were treated with kindness and compassion and spoke highly of the staff. People reported positive and caring relationships had been developed between themselves and the staff. People felt able to contribute to decisions about their care and were involved in the planning and reviewing of their care and how they wanted their care delivered. People were treated with dignity and respect by staff who understood the importance of this.

People received the care they needed and staff were aware of the different support each person required. Care records were written in a person centred way that focused on people’s wishes and respected their views. Care plans provided sufficient information for staff to provide personalised care. A complaints process was in place, and people felt able to make a complaint. People felt confident that staff would be respond in a timely manner.

People felt empowered to contribute to the development of the service. The registered manager actively sought people’s views and acted on them. There were systems in place to monitor and improve the quality of the service provided. The service was led by a registered manager who had a clear understanding of their role and how to improve the lives of all of the people at the service. They had a robust auditing process in place that identified the risks to people and the service as a whole and they were dealt with quickly and effectively.

This inspection was carried out by one inspector. 19 people were using the service at the time of our inspection. We spoke with six people who used the service and two relatives. We also looked at care plans and other records. We spoke with the managers and three care staff working at the service.

When we last inspected this service on 17 January 2014 we found the service did not have suitable arrangements in place to ensure staff were receiving appropriate training, professional development, supervision and appraisal in a timely manner. At this inspection we found the provider had addressed the issues raised in the previous inspection. A summary of what we found is set out below.

Is the service safe?

One person who used the service told us care staff were, “Very competent at what they do.”

We saw the service obtained advice about any health concerns from healthcare professionals working in the community.

The service provided additional training and support for care staff if an error had been made, for example, in supporting people with their medicines.

Is the service effective?

People’s care plans were reviewed and records of the care provided were reviewed by the manager. The care records we looked at showed risks, such as people falling, were identified. Care staff had recorded ways of reducing risk when providing care.

Is the service responsive?

People who used the service told us the service responded to any issues they raised. One person told us, “If I have any concerns I ring the office. I am confident anything I raise will get dealt with.”

We saw the service had worked closely with a charity to obtain a piece of equipment for a person.

Is the service caring?

One person told us care staff had supported them to attend a family event. They said they would not have been able to attend the event without support.

Another person told us care staff, “Are understanding and caring and I really feel they are there for me when I need them.”

Is the service well led?

The service obtained the views of people who used the service and their relatives. People who used the service told us the manager frequently spoke to them about the service and responded to any issues or concerns they raised.

The service had systems in place for reporting and responding to incidents.

We spoke with three people who used the service, one relative and two members of staff during our visit.

A relative told us they were visited by the agency to discuss the care package for their family member. They told us they were fully involved in the care needs of their relative to ensure their care needs would be met.

People who used the service told us they were treated with dignity and respect by the people who cared for them. One person said, “They always ask my permission before they cream my legs.” Another person said, “When they help me to get dressed they keep it very private and close the door.”

We found care plans were person centred and contained detailed information for each individual. We saw each file that we looked at had appropriate care assessments, risk assessments and information relevant to the service the agency provided.

We saw policies and procedures were in place to ensure people were kept safe. One person told us they felt very safe with the people who cared for them. We found the relevant check had taken place including information form the disclosure and barring service, which carries out individual checks on people who work with vulnerable adults.

We found staff had undertaken an induction before they started working at the agency. We saw staff had gained certificates and qualifications relevant to the work they did.