We undertook this announced inspection 16 and 17 November 2016. The provider had been given 48 hours’ notice of the visit. This was the first inspection of this service. Karva Care is registered to provide personal care to adults who live in their own homes in the community. At the time of the inspection they were providing personal care to 25 people who had various support needs including living with dementia and high levels of physical disability.

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.

We found people received a service that was based on their personal needs and wishes. People's needs had been assessed before they started receiving care and people we spoke with told us they had been involved in developing their care plans. Changes in people's needs were not noted in their care records in a timely manner. Risks people might experience with their care and their environments had been identified and were managed well.

The service only supported a small number of people with their medicines. We found that people’s medicines were managed safely. We saw that people were supported to be as independent as possible to take their own medicines. Where support was required, all processes for recording and managing medicines safely were followed.

We found the service employed enough staff to meet the needs of the people being supported. People who used the service were happy with the numbers of staff that supported them and knew them well.

People were supported by staff who have been assessed as suitable to support them safely. We found that staff were trained and supported to undertake additional training as necessary. Staff knew how to recognise and respond to abuse correctly.

Staff told us they felt well supported and received regular supervision. Staff spoke highly of the management and support they received. People and staff knew how to make a complaint and felt confident that it would be dealt with well. People were encouraged to give their views about the quality of the care provided to help drive up standards. There were no formal systems in place to monitor and ensure that the service was effective and improving, and the registered manager had a limited understanding of the Mental Capacity Act.

This inspection took place on 11 February 2015. We gave the provider 24 hours’ notice to make sure that there would be someone in the office at the time of our visit.

Karva Care Services is a small domiciliary care agency which provides personal care to people in their own homes. At the time of our visit there were eight people using the service. Karva was providing a service to people who had been discharged from hospital and who needed support, initially for the for a six week period. Some people had continued to use the service after that period. 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 using this service told us that they felt safe. There were good systems for making sure that staff reported any allegation or suspicion of poor practice and staff were aware of the possible signs and symptoms of abuse.

People told us that they were happy with the service provided. People told us that they were included in decisions about how their care was provided. People told us about how staff helped them to retain skills and to stay as independent as possible.

People told us that staff treated them with dignity and respect. Staff working in this service understood the needs of the people for whom they provided care. Staff were aware of people's needs arising from their medical conditions.

Staff were appropriately trained and skilled to provide care and support to people. The staff had completed relevant training to make sure that the care provided to people was safe and effective to meet their needs.

The Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) states what must be done to ensure that the rights of people who may lack mental capacity to make decisions are protected, including when balancing autonomy and protection in relation to consent or refusal of care. The MCA Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) requires providers to submit applications to the Court of Protection for authority to deprive someone of their liberty. We did not find anyone being deprived of their liberty.

The registered manager encouraged feedback from people who used the service, their family members, advocates and professional visitors, which she used to make improvements to the service.

The registered manager assessed and monitored the quality of care consistently. In addition to regular observations and supervision of staff, the manager consulted people using the service to find out their views on the care provided.