The inspection took place on 28 June 2017 and was announced.

This is a domiciliary care service registered to provide personal care. At the time of our inspection, there was one person using the service, receiving support from two regular staff members with occasional cover from relief staff. Support was primarily commissioned to improve the person's access to the community and to provide respite care support overnight. Support with personal care was limited only to prompting at this stage.

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.

The service offered support in a safe way. There were enough staff, robustly recruited to contribute to protecting people. They understood the potential risks people’s safety and welfare and how they should act to minimise these. Staff recognised their obligation to report any concerns that people might be at risk of harm or abuse and had training to recognise the potential signs of this. Although staff did not need to administer medicines at this time, they had training to do so safely should a person need this support in future.

Staff received training to deliver care competently and effectively, including the opportunity to work towards qualifications in care. Staff were well supported in their roles and had access to support or advice from the registered manager when they needed it.

Communication within the service worked well to provide opportunities for discussion and to make any changes to support if necessary. Staff understood the importance of communicating with people their relatives about decisions and choices, and of seeking consent to any care needed.

There was a small and consistent staff team who had developed warm and compassionate relationships with the person they supported. They understood and knew the person well so they could meet their needs effectively.

The support and prompting staff delivered, was focused on the needs and preferences of the individual and was consistent with a commissioner's expectations. If there were any concerns about the standard of support, people were confident the registered manager would listen to their complaints and take action.

The service was managed in a way that empowered people and staff to express their views and to be confident of being listened to. There were regular formal and informal opportunities for this to happen and for their opinions to be taken into account. This had fostered good staff morale and enthusiasm for their work.

The registered manager understood the importance of ensuring they kept up to date with expected standards and good practice. They also operated an effective system for auditing the quality and safety of the service so they could make improvements where they needed to.