We inspected EAM Homecare Limited (EAM Homecare) on 11th April 2017. This was an announced inspection which meant we gave the provider 24 hours notice of our visit because the service is a small domiciliary care agency and we wanted to be certain there would be someone available to facilitate our inspection. The inspection team consisted of one adult social care inspector.

EAM Homecare provides care and support to people with complex health needs including learning and physical disabilities within their own homes. At the time of this inspection the service provided care and support to two people. This was the first inspection since the service registered in October 2015.

The service had a manager who had been registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) since July 2011. 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.

We spoke with people’s relatives because people using the service were unable to communicate with us verbally.

Relatives told us they felt safe with the care and support they received. They said continuity of staff providing support and care reinforced safety. All staff had been trained in safeguarding principles and knew what to do if they suspected abuse was occurring. People were protected from unsafe care and treatment because there were effective systems in place to review and monitor people’s safety.

There were risk assessments in place for people using the service. These provided clear direction to support staff to manage risk appropriately to meet people’s specific needs.

The service implemented safe recruitment processes to help ensure care staff were fit for the job they were recruited to do. This should help to ensure people were kept safe from harm.

There were systems in place to ensure medicines were administered safely and appropriately recorded. The competence of staff to administer medicines had to be validated before they were able to do so.

Staff were knowledgeable in good infection control practices which should help to ensure people were protected from risk of infection.

Relatives of people receiving support told us they felt staff were competent and did a good job. There was a good induction process in place and all new staff had to complete mandatory training such as health and safety, safeguarding awareness, infection control, and moving and handling. Staff told us they were supported in their roles and received additional role-specific training. Records showed that staff had regular supervisions and an annual appraisal of their performance with their line manager. Professional support and development opportunities should help staff to be effective in their roles.

The service worked within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) to ensure that care provided had been authorised in the correct manner.

Relatives told us both care staff and management at EAM Homecare were kind and caring. Staff and management knew the people they supported well and demonstrated this by telling us about people and their preferences.

Staff were able to demonstrate how they treated people with dignity and respect and relatives gave us examples to confirm this practice.

Care plans were detailed and person-centred and showed that relatives were involved in making decisions about what affected people, and that their views and opinions were listened to and acted upon.

The service had not received any complaints from people’s relatives. Relatives told us they were aware of the provider’s complaint’s process but had never had the need to do so.

The provider undertook an annual satisfaction survey and we saw that people and relatives responded positively. There were appropriate forums for both peop