Premier Care provides help and support to people with varying needs enabling them to remain in their own homes and be as independent as possible. The agency offers a variety of services including assistance with personal care, domestic tasks, meal preparation and shopping. The agency office is situated on the outskirts of Rochdale with access to local towns via public transport.

The service had 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 a legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

The service changed their location and this is the first rated inspection at the new location.

Staff we spoke with were aware of how to protect vulnerable people and had safeguarding policies and procedures to guide them, which included the contact details of the local authority to report to.

Recruitment procedures were robust and ensured new staff should be safe to work with vulnerable adults.

Risk assessments for health needs or environmental hazards helped protect the health and welfare of people who used the service but did not restrict their lifestyles.

Staff were trained in the administration of medicines and managers checked the records to help spot any errors and keep people safe.

Staff were trained in infection control topics and issued with personal protective equipment to help prevent the spread of infection.

Staff received an induction and were supported when they commenced employment to become competent to work with vulnerable people. Staff were well trained and supervised to feel confident within their roles. Staff were encouraged to take training in health and social care topics.

People were supported to take a healthy diet if required and staff were trained in food safety.

Staff told us how they would support someone if they thought their liberty was being deprived to help protect their rights.

We observed a good rapport between people who used the service and the care coordinator. People who used the service told us staff were reliable and they knew them well.

Personal records were held securely to help protect people’s privacy.

There was a complaints procedure for people to raise any concerns they may have.

People were assisted to attend meaningful activities if it was a part of their support package.

Plans of care gave staff clear details of what care people needed. People helped develop their plans of care to ensure the care they received was what they wanted.

There were systems in place to monitor the quality of service provision and where needed the manager took action to improve the service.

The office was suitable for providing a domiciliary care service and was staffed during office hours. There was an on call service for people to contact out of normal working hours.

People who used the service thought managers were accessible and available to talk to.