The inspection took place on 7 and 11 October 2016 and was announced. There were no breaches of legal requirements at the last inspection, which was in February 2014.

Millennium Care Services is a registered domiciliary care agency providing personal care and support to people in their own homes. The office base of the agency is in Featherstone, West Yorkshire. There were five people in receipt of personal care when we inspected.

There was a registered manager at the service. 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.

Staff were confident in how to ensure people were safeguarded against abuse and there were clear risk identification and management strategies in place.

Recruitment procedures were robust overall, with evidence of references and disclosure checks carried out prior to staff working with vulnerable people.

Staff understood the legislation around the Mental Capacity Act and how this impacts upon people's lives, and although records around the best interest decision making process and consent discussions were not fully available for us to inspect, the registered manager forwarded this information onto us following the inspection.

There were very detailed and relevant opportunities for staff training tailored to the needs of the people who used the service. Staff were supported well in all aspects of their work.

Staff in all roles were passionate and dedicated to their work and care provided was meaningful and person-centred. Care and support for staff was embedded, which meant staff were able to support people more effectively. Care was person-centred and there were detailed plans, assessments and reviews to ensure people's needs were met.

People and relatives spoke highly of the service and the positive impact it had on their lives.

Complaints information was clear and accessible and feedback was encouraged and shared with staff.

Leadership and management of the service was enabling; staff were highly valued and empowered to do their work. Quality assurance systems were in place to ensure the service delivery was maintained. Staff understood the core values of the organisation and promoted these in their approach to their work.

People we spoke with told us they were happy with the care and support they received. People or their relatives were involved in making decisions about their care and support. A person we spoke with said “My support is good. I am well cared for.” A relative said “Staff know X needs well. I know when he is out with the staff X is safe and we can rest. X gets the care he needs.”

There was enough skilled and experienced staff to meet people’s needs. This was confirmed by people we spoke with. Staff were provided with training to ensure they had the skills they needed to be able to support people. This included training in infection prevention and control, which helped to protect all parties.

The quality of the service being provided was being monitored by the management team. Any issues found were being acted upon. This helped to ensure that people remained satisfied with the service they received. We received the following comments from relatives we spoke with: “The manager phones and asks for my opinion. I would raise any issues” and “I cannot find words to describe how good Millennium has worked for us. They listen to us and take our views on board.”

We spoke with four people who used the service and one relative to gain their views about their experience of the service provided by Millennium Care. All the people spoken with were complimentary about the service. We found people were given appropriate information and support regarding their care and support. People who used the service told us they received good information to help them make lifestyle choices.

People spoken with told us they were happy with the care and support they received. We saw people and their families had been involved in making decisions about their care and support and information provided by them was used to develop comprehensive care plans. One relative commented: “The care and support is very personalised. I think the service is phenomenal.”

We saw the service had policies and procedures in place to safeguard people from abuse. These provided guidance for staff on the procedure to follow and their responsibilities if abuse was suspected. The policy was also available in an easy read version to make it more accessible to people who used the service.

A complaints policy was in place and again this was available in easy read format to assist people with their communication needs. We asked for and received a summary of complaints people had made. We saw people’s comments and complaints had been acted on by the manager and resolved to the person’s satisfaction.