About the service: Genuine Carers Limited is a domiciliary care agency, providing personal care to people living in Huddersfield.

People’s experience of using this service:

•People told us they felt safe. Risk assessments were in place to reduce the risk of harm to people. Care workers completed medicines training and an assessment of their competency to administer medicines was completed. Suggested improvements to the management of peoples creams were implemented immediately.

•Staff recruitment was safe. People told us care workers did not miss their calls and were usually on time. New staff received induction and there was a programme of ongoing staff supervision, spot checks and refresher training.

•Staff were caring and kind. Peoples right to privacy was respected and staff took steps to maintain their dignity.

•People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Where people lacked capacity, support was provided in their best interest's although records did not clearly evidence this.

•One of the care records we reviewed was person centred and detailed but improvements were needed to another persons care record to ensure they were sufficiently detailed.

•People and their relatives were aware of how to raise a complaint should the need arise. The management team asked people and their relatives for feedback at regular intervals. Staff meetings were held but care workers comments had not been routinely recorded within the minutes. One care worker told us they did not feel supported by the management team and we saw noted one care worker had not had a rest day for three months.

•There were systems in place to monitor the quality of the service although these had not identified areas where further improvements could be made.

Rating at last inspection:

At the last inspection the service was rated good (published 15 October 2016).

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection based on the rating awarded at the last inspection.

Follow up:

We will continue to monitor the service to ensure that people receive safe, compassionate, high quality care. Further inspections will be planned for future dates.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

This inspection took place on 24 August 2016 and was announced.

We previously inspected the service on 08 November 2013 and at that time we found the registered provider was meeting the regulations we inspected.

Genuine Carers is a specialist homecare agency who provides home care predominantly to people of south Asian origin in the Kirklees area of West Yorkshire and in Oxfordshire.

The registered provider is also the registered manager for the service. 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.

Relatives we spoke with told us they were very happy with the service provided and they felt their relation was safe with Genuine carers. Staff had received safeguarding training and were aware of their responsibility to report any concerns to their manager.

Care plans contained risk assessments which were relevant to people’s individual needs and the environment, although one of these lacked detail for staff about how risks could be reduced when supporting people to transfer.

The registered person had a robust system in place to vet potential employees. All staff were trained and assessed as competent to administer people’s medicines.

Staff told us they felt supported. New employees were supported in their role and there was a programme of on-going refresher training for existing staff. Staff received regular supervision to ensure they had the skills and competence to meet people’s needs.

Staff had received training in the Mental Capacity Act and understood people’s rights to make decisions about their lives.

Staff were caring and kind. People’s privacy and dignity was respected and care plans reflected the need to encourage people to retain their level of independence. The service catered for people's diverse cultural and language needs.

People had care plans in place which noted the tasks they required support with, as well as detail about their choices and preferences. Staff told us these were reflective of people’s needs and we saw these were updated regularly.

Relatives of people who used the service and staff told us the service was well-led and relatives were very happy with the care provided.

The registered person had a system in place to monitor the performance of the service. Staff were monitored at regular intervals and audits were completed of people’s daily records. The registered provider asked people and staff for feedback, this information had been reviewed and fed back to staff.

During our inspection we spoke with the manager and three staff. We also spoke with three relatives of people using the service.

Relatives of people who used the service were positive, comments included:

“We get the same staff, they are reliable and caring.”

“I have been more than impressed.”

Peoples’ diversity, values and human rights were respected.

We looked at care records for three people who used the service. We saw that each record included details of their medical history, personal preferences, likes and dislikes.

Three members of staff we spoke with were able to describe a number of types of abuse.

We looked at three sets of staff records and found that effective recruitment and selection processes were in place.

Documentation also showed an effective system for auditing the quality of service.

We looked at the care records of two people who use the service, looked at three staff files and spoke with the Registered Manager about the service provided. The Registered Manager told us they were in weekly contact with people who received care from Genuine Carers and that they addressed any concerns quickly. We saw evidence of communication with people who use the service within their care plans. The majority of the comments we looked at were positive. Where concerns were raised we saw evidence that the Registered Manager had taken action.

We saw from the staff files that care staff including volunteers were supported and had received appropriate training for their role.

People who use the service told us that care staff arrived on time and stayed for the time that had been agreed. They said that the carers were very good and always carried out the care that had been agreed and recorded in their care plan.

One person said, “They are really nice girls. They come on time and do what they are supposed to do.”

People said that before they were offered the care everything was agreed with them and they knew what to expect.

One person said that they felt the carers gave them excellent care and that included everything in their care plan. They said that the carers were excellent and they could not fault them.

People said that their care was discussed with them, carried out sensitively and that they were treated with dignity and respect.

Another person said that as part of their care package the agency staff monitored what they ate and drank and made sure that they had a meal at a set times during the day.

Further comments include:

“The staff are very good.”

“I am pleased about the care I receive.”

“The staff always do what has been agreed and I feel if I asked them to do a little extra it would not be a problem.”

In relation to infection control people told us that the staff always wore gloves and aprons when carrying out their care and that the staff also wore a uniform and an identification badge.

People told us that they did not have any concerns but if they did they knew who to contact.

One person said, “No complaints. “Very nice girls. Very helpful.”