This inspection visit took place on 24, 25 and 26 July 2018 and was announced.

Stella Care is a domiciliary care service, which provides personal care for adults who live in their own homes. The service caters for older people, as well as those with a physical disability or sensory impairment and also those who are living with a dementia related illness. The domiciliary care service is based in offices in Torquay Devon. The service currently supports 18 people in the community.

At the time of our inspection a manager was in post, who was in the process of registering with the Care Quality Commission. The new manager was available and co-operative throughout the inspection process, during which they demonstrated openness and transparency. 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 very happy with the service and the support they received. People had confidence in the staff who supported them. Care staff were familiar to them and knew them well. There were enough staff to provide care and to offer flexibility in the service. The manager made sure new staff had a full employment history and obtained recruitment checks before employing them. Staff received training to enable them to deliver effective care. They were supported in their roles by supervision and appraisal.

People told us their care workers were kind and caring. They confirmed that their privacy and dignity was respected at all times and they were supported to maintain their independence, as far as possible. Records we saw supported this information.

People received a safe service. We found the service had systems in place to record safeguarding concerns, accidents and incidents and take necessary action as required. Staff had received safeguarding training and understood their responsibilities to provide safe care for people.

Risk assessments were in place to ensure that health care risks and environmental hazards had been identified and strategies implemented, in-order to protect people from harm. However, specific risks related to complex health needs were not in place, such as, people living with diabetes or epilepsy and for people at risk of choking. We made a recommendation to the provider about assessing risks and all health related risks were implemented immediately and included in people's care plans by the end of the inspection.

Staff understood how consent should be considered in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005. The registered manager understood the requirements of the law and what action to take if they became concerned about a person's ability to make decisions for themselves.

People were offered choices in the meals and drinks staff prepared for them. Staff understood people's dietary requirements and when necessary left snacks or drinks for the person to have later.

People were involved in planning their care and determining how they wished to receive support. They spoke highly of the care they received and of how staff would assist them with additional tasks if necessary. People's care was reviewed and updated in line with their needs and wishes. Where people could benefit from additional support, referrals were made to other healthcare professionals.

People felt able to contact the management team or staff if they had concerns and said they received a quick response.

Systems had been implemented so that the quality of service provided could be closely monitored, to ensure that people were receiving the care and support they required. These were in the form of audits and surveys. Records showed that people had been asked for their views about the service they received and meetings for staff were held at regular intervals, so that th