The inspection took place on 30 March 2017. JM Carehomes Limited provides a domiciliary care service which offers personal care, companionship and domestic help to support people living in supported accommodation. They are currently supporting 40 people.

The service has a registered manager. 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 safeguarded from the potential of harm and their freedoms protected. People were cared for safely by staff who had been recruited and employed after appropriate checks had been completed. Care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that was intended to ensure people's safety and welfare.

Staff had received regular training and were knowledgeable about their roles and responsibilities. They had the skills, knowledge and experience required to support people. The service worked well with other professionals to ensure that people's health needs were met. Where appropriate, support and guidance were sought from health care professionals, including GPs and mental health professionals. People were supported with their nutrition and hydration needs. Staff supported people with their medication when required.

Staff knew the people they were supporting and provided a personalised service. Care plans were in place detailing how people wished to be supported and people were involved in making decisions about their care. Staff were attentive to people's needs and treated people with dignity and respect.

People were supported with activities which interested them. People and their representatives knew how to make a complaint and the service had processes in place to deal with these.

The registered manager had a number of ways of gathering people’s views including talking with people, staff, and relatives. In addition the registered manager also gained people’s views by the use of questionnaires. Quality monitoring audits were completed to help ensure the service was running effectively and to make improvements.

We carried out this inspection on 10 June 2014. We spoke with five people who were using the service at the time of our inspection. We also spoke with four staff members. We looked at six people's care records. We also looked at the staffing rotas, training documents and documents regarding the level of dependency of people. We considered our inspection findings to answer questions we always ask; Is the service safe? Is the service effective? Is the service caring? Is the service responsive? Is the service well-led?

This is a summary of what we found;

Is the service safe?

We found that the care records had been completed and detailed information was provided for people's individual needs. This provided staff with information on how to care form people in a safe way.

People told us that they felt safe and happy with the service they received from JM Carehomes Limited.

We saw that the care workers had been provided with training in safeguarding vulnerable adults from abuse, the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). This meant that staff had been provided with the information they needed which would help to ensure that people were safeguarded from abuse.

Is the service effective?

People told us that, overall, their care needs were met at the service. People said that they were provided the assistance they required and that they had enough staff to help them.

Is the service caring?

We observed staff treating people respectfully. People told us that the staff were kind and caring.

Is the service responsive?

People told us that the service was responsive to their needs. The care plans had been updated to reflect people’s changing needs.

Is the service well-led?

The registered manager was at the service on the day of the inspection. Staff we spoke to told us that the manager was approachable and supportive.

The registered manager had completed audits of the service, these also included surveys completed by relatives and people who used the service. This meant that people's views were taken into account.

People we spoke with told us that they were happy using the service. They told us that they received medicines at the times they expected and that staff treated them well.

We found that people who were using the service were protected against the risks associated with medicines. This was because there were arrangements for ensuring that medicines were available and administered as prescribed. Medicines were stored appropriately and safely. Checks were carried out to ensure that medicines were managed safely within the service.

We found that there were appropriate arrangements in place for recruiting staff robustly and safely so as to help ensure that people using the service received safe and appropriate care. We saw that all of the required checks including employment references and Disclosure and Barring Services (DBS) disclosures were obtained.

We found that the required improvements had been made in respect of the concerns we identified when we last visited the service.

This inspection of JM Carehomes Limited on 7 and 8 May 2013 was carried out in response to concerns raised by a whistle blower. We only had the opportunity to speak with three of the 23 people who used this service, as most were involved in activities and were not available. We found people were satisfied with their care and support, and no one raised concerns about insufficient staff support. One person said, "I'm happy here, someone will always help me."

We looked at care records for five people who used the service. We found they were offered support at a level which encouraged independence and ensured their individual needs were met. However we found medication systems were insufficient to ensure medication was always administered safely.

People told us most staff were friendly and courteous in their approach, and we found staff to be knowledgeable and confident in their roles. Staff records showed appropriate training was in place, however the recruitment processes were not always followed consistently.

We reviewed the providers' systems for managing safeguarding and keeping people safe. There were policies and procedures in place, and the staff we spoke with, were familiar with the processes they should follow.

The provider welcomed suggestions from people to improve the service they provided, and people said they felt able to approach the manager to discuss anything. They were confident that action would be taken to resolve any issues they had.