This inspection was announced and took place on 5 and 6 September 2016. This was our first inspection since the provider registered with us in February 2015. Home Instead Senior Care is registered to provide personal care support to people living in their own homes in the Cannock, Rugeley and South Staffordshire areas. People who used the service had physical health needs, and/or were living with dementia or had other mental health needs. At the time of our inspection 47 people were receiving personal care support.

There was 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.

People were safe and felt reassured when receiving support. Staff understood how to protect people from abuse and avoidable harm. Risks to people were assessed and managed and staff knew how to identify risks and take the necessary actions. There were enough staff available to meet people’s needs and keep them safe and the provider had safe recruitment processes in place. When needed, people were supported to take their medicines safely.

Staff had the knowledge and skills required to meet people needs and carry out their roles by receiving the training they needed. People were supported to make decisions about their care and when people could not make these decisions for themselves, this was done in their best interests. People were enabled to have enough to eat and drink and were supported to maintain their health and wellbeing.

People were supported by staff who were caring and kind and had established positive relationships. Staff knew people well and understood how people communicated. People were listened to and were treated with dignity and respect. People were involved in making decisions about their support and staff promoted people’s independence.

People were involved with the planning of their care and their views were taken into account. They received care that was individual to them and responsive to their needs. People felt confident to raise any concerns or complaints and the provider responded to any issues in a timely manner. The provider encouraged people to share their experiences and give feedback about the service they received.

People who used the service, staff and community professionals were positive about the management and leadership within the service. There were effective systems in place to assess and monitor the quality of care and this was used to drive continuous improvement.