This inspection took place on 17 May 2018 and was announced. We gave the registered manager 48 hours to make sure someone was available to meet with us. At our previous inspection of the service in April 2015 we rated the services Good overall and found the service was meeting regulations.

Eldon Housing is an ‘extra care’ service. Extra care services provide personal care to older people living in their own flats within schemes. Eldon Housing provided personal care to people in three schemes: Lindsay Court and Westdene in Croydon and Joan Nightingale House in West Sussex. Some people were living with dementia and some had physical disabilities. There were 43 people receiving the regulated activity personal care at the time of our inspection.

The service had a registered manager in post. 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.

The provider had audits in place to monitor and assess the quality of service. However, although audits in relation to medicines management and infection control required improvement. In addition auditing systems to check the service was providing care in line with the MCA required improvement. Staff received training in managing medicines and the provider was planning to introduce assessments to check the competency of each staff member.

There were enough staff to care for people and people received consistency of care from staff who knew them well. Staff were recruited following robust procedures to check their suitability.

Risks relating to people’s care were reduced, such as those relating to falls and moving and handling. The provider assessed risks and put management plans in place for staff to follow. Risks relating to infection control were also reduced as staff followed suitable infection control procedures. The provider told us they would introduce robust infection control audits to check procedures always met best practice.

People were safeguarded from abuse and neglect as staff understood the signs people may be being abused and how to respond to keep people safe. Staff were confident to whistleblow if they observed poor practice. In addition the provider monitored significant events such as safeguarding and accidents and incidents to check people received the right support and to see how the service could learn and improve from the events.

People received their choice of food and drink and particularly enjoyed the food served in the restaurants on site. Staff supported people to maintain their health and to access healthcare services where this was part of their care package.

The management and staff did not always know the action to take if they suspected a person may lack capacity in relation to the care, in line with the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005, such as assessing their mental capacity and making decisions in people’s best interests. In addition the provider was not always clear on the full process involved in depriving people of their liberty lawfully in an extra care setting. However, they had taken the action required of them by notifying the local authority of people who needed to be deprived of their liberty to keep them safe. The registered manager told us they would improve in relation to these areas.

Staff were supported to meet people’s needs through a programme of induction, training, supervision and appraisal.

Staff were caring and treated people with dignity and respect. People were involved in decisions about their care and were encouraged to maintain their independence as far as possible. Staff knew the people they supported and developed good relationships with them.

People’s care plans were sufficiently detailed and reliable to guide staff on caring for people. Pe

As an extra care housing provision the Association was not required to be registered with us for the accommodation because people were living in their own flats. They were however registered to deliver personal care to people and this is the area we looked at during our inspection.

We visited the agency office and met with the registered manager. We made a separate visit to two of the Association’s extra care schemes to speak to people who use the domiciliary care services. We spoke with nine people, one relative, seven staff and the two scheme managers. The reader should note that the term "tenant" is also used in this report and refers to people who reside in the housing schemes and use domiciliary care services.

The overall feedback was highly complimentary about the care and services provided and told us that people benefit from a well-organised and reliable service.

Comments included, “I couldn’t be happier, the carers are all very good,” A relative said,” very happy, the service is excellent.”

People told us they always had regular carers and described them as “very good”, “excellent” and “friendly”. Other comments included, “the staff are wonderful, nothing is too much trouble” and “they always have time to chat.”

People who received domiciliary care support told us that the agency keeps in touch with them on a regular basis. They said they can voice their concerns and felt they could make a complaint if it was required. One person said, “there is always someone around if you need them”

We viewed training records and spoke to staff about training that was available to them. The staff we spoke with told us that training was “very good” and they were supported by the management regarding their learning and development needs.

Comments included, “supervision is regular” and “there is good teamwork, we work together.” Another staff said, “the manager will answer any queries.”

We found there were effective systems in place to monitor the quality of the service provided.

All those who took part in this inspection are thanked for their time and contribution to share their views about the agency.

This inspection took place on 14 and 15 April 2015 and was announced. We carried out this inspection at short notice (48 hours) because we needed to check that the registered manager, or another senior person in the service, would be available to speak with us at the time of our visit.

At our last inspection on September 2013 we found the provider was meeting all the Regulations reviewed. Eldon Housing Association is registered as a domiciliary care agency. It provides a service to people who live in extra care services in Croydon and West Sussex. The service provides a team of staff who provide a service over twenty four hours; it offers people personal care, practical support and 'extra care' they require to continue to live independently. Thirty two people were receiving this service at the time of the inspection. The service employed twenty three care staff.

The service had a registered manager in place. 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 spoken with confirmed that they felt safe and had no concerns regarding the care provided. Staff were suitably trained and knowledgeable and understood safeguarding policies and procedures and knew what they should do if they suspected abuse or neglect was occurring.

We found that robust recruitment practices were in place which included the completion of pre-employment checks prior to a new member of staff working at the service.

Staff retention was good. The service employed a regular team of care workers who were trained and competent in their roles. They received specific training that equipped them with the skills needed; all staff were trained in dementia care and managing situations that could challenge.

People confirmed that staff stayed for the length of time required and delivered the care and support they required. People also confirmed that calls had never been missed and that there was always a staff member available.

Care staff interacted positively with people and demonstrated caring compassionate qualities.

People found that care staff respected their privacy and dignity and helped them to remain as independent as they could. Staff told of good team work, they liked working for Eldon Housing Association Limited. When asked what the service did well one staff member said, “There is very good care provided, they always deal promptly with people’s requests.” Another member of staff told us management were helpful and there was always someone in a managerial role available to talk to if needed.

Care records were well maintained and provided up to date information about the person’s individual needs which meant that staff had relevant information and understood how to support each person to provide consistent care. The provider had effective quality monitoring systems and feedback from people using the service was used to improve the support they received.