This inspection took place on the 7 and 8 November 2016 and was announced. We gave the provider 48 hours’ notice that we would be visiting. This was because the provider offers a supported service to people living in their own homes and we wanted to make sure that people and staff would be available to speak with us.

Helping Hands is a community based adult social care service supporting people with personal care in their own homes. They currently support 53 people.

There was a registered manager in post at the time of our inspection. 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 were kept safe. Staff had received training and understood the different types of abuse and knew what action they would take if they thought a person was at risk of harm. People were kept safe by staff that were able to recognise the signs of abuse and raise concerns if needed. Staff were provided with sufficient guidance on how to support people’s medical care and support needs if required.

People were supported by staff that had been safely recruited People and relatives felt that they were being supported by staff with the appropriate skills and knowledge to provide good care and support for them. Staff were trained and supported so that they had the knowledge and skills to enable them to care for people in a way that met their individual needs and preferences.

Where people required support at meal times, staff provided meals to their specific needs and understood the benefits of a healthy diet.

People were supported to make choices and were involved in the care and support they received. Staff had an awareness of the Mental Capacity Act and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguarding (DoLS) and how to support people with their best interests at heart.

Staff were caring and treated people with dignity and respect. People’s choices and independence was respected and promoted and staff responded to people’s support needs. People and their relatives felt they could speak with the provider about their worries or concerns and felt they would be listened to and have their concerns addressed.

Staff spoke positively about the provider and the supportive culture they had established.

The provider had quality assurance and audit systems in place to monitor the care and support people received to ensure the service remained consistent and effective.