The inspection took place on 20 October 2016, with the provider being given short notice of the visit to the office in line with our current methodology for inspecting domiciliary care agencies and similar services. The service was last inspected in 2014, with no breaches identified for any of the regulations we inspected

J S Parker South West Centre provides tailored care packages to children and young people with brain injuries acquired through injury. At the time of the inspection, 34 people were using the provider’s services, with nine of them receiving personal care.

The service had 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. The registered manager was a senior manager within the organisation who had a good knowledge of this location. Additionally, there was a manager responsible for the day to day operations of the location, and they were in the process of applying to become registered at the time of the inspection.

People’s care files showed that their care needs had been thoroughly assessed, both before they started using the service and at regular intervals once their care was being delivered. We spoke with parents of some of the children and young people using the service, and they told us the staff were caring and understood their relative’s needs. People using the service and their parents were involved in planning their care, and their views about their care and support was incorporated into how care was delivered.

Staff had completed a comprehensive induction, and a training programme was available that helped them meet the needs of the people they supported. Training was delivered both in house and by external providers. We found recruitment processes were thorough, which helped the employer make safer recruitment decisions when employing new staff.

Records demonstrated people’s capacity to make decisions had been considered as part of their care assessment, and staff we spoke with had a good understanding of their legal responsibilities in relation to consent and mental capacity

There were systems in place to reduce the risk of abuse and to assess and monitor potential risks to individual people. Risk assessments were up to date and very detailed.

There was a system in place to tell people how to make a complaint and how it would be managed. One person told us about their experience in making a complaint and described that it was well-managed.

There was a registered manager who, along with other managers within the service, had a clear oversight of the service, and of the people who were using it. There was a robust audit system in place which contributed to ongoing service development.

Staff told us they felt supported by the organisation and said they were able to contribute their views about how the service was run.

Information about children’s experiences of JSP South West Centre was gained by visiting one young person at home and speaking with their parent’s. We spoke with the families of three children by telephone following our inspection. Information was also gained by speaking with the regional manager on the day of our inspection and by speaking with three members of staff by telephone following our inspection. We also reviewed a range of records and other relevant documentation.

Our conversations with parents demonstrated that the service maintained children’s dignity and privacy and respected their individual choices. We found that both children and their families were at the centre of their support plans and the information within them.

Parents were positive about the support provided by JSP South West Centre and the support workers. One parent described the support provided as, “brilliant,” and stated," the calibre of support workers is exceptional.”

Our conversations with staff and our check of records demonstrated that the service were aware of, and followed local safeguarding procedures in order to safeguard the children they supported.

We found that effective processes were in place to ensure that children were cared for by suitably qualified, skilled and experienced staff.

Appropriate systems were in place to gather, record and evaluate the quality and safety of care provided by JSP South West Centre.