Tamworth Homecare is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats. It provides a service to older adults and younger adults with a physical or learning disability in and around Tamworth and Lichfield. The organisation provides other support that is not regulated by us including support in the community.

On our last inspection in February 2016 the service was rated as Good; on this inspection we found the service remained Good. However, we found the service needed to make improvements to how they supported people to make decisions which meant, ‘Is this service effective?’ was now ‘requires improvement’. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. However, improvements were needed to ensure decisions were only made in people’s best interests.

The service had a manager in place at the time of our inspection. 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 continued to receive safe care. Risks to people’s health and wellbeing were assessed and this was reviewed to ensure people continued to be assisted in a safe manner. The staff understood how to protect people from harm and the registered manager had reflected on how safeguarding concerns were addressed to ensure these were reported promptly. Some people received assistance to take medicines and records were kept to ensure that this was done safely. There were safe recruitment procedures in place to ensure new staff were suitable to work with people.

Staff were supported and trained to ensure that they had the skills to support people effectively. When people required assistance to eat and drink, the provider ensured that this was planned to meet their preferences and assessed need. People were able to make decisions about how they wanted to receive support to ensure their health needs were met.

The care people received remained good. Care was planned and reviewed with people and the provider ensured that people’s choices were followed. People’s privacy and dignity were respected and upheld by the staff who supported them. People felt comfortable with staff who they knew and satisfied with the support provided.

The service remained responsive. The support plans reflected people’s specific needs and preferences for how they wished to be supported and this was reviewed. People felt comfortable raising any issues or concerns directly with staff and there were arrangements in place to deal with any complaints. Information was being reviewed to ensure it this was accessible to all people who used the service.

The service remained well led. Staff felt supported by the registered manager. Regular quality checks were completed and people could comment on the quality of service provision. People and staff were encouraged to raise any views about the service to consider how improvements could be made.

We inspected this service on 4 and 8 February 2016. This was an announced inspection and we telephoned the week prior to our inspection, in order to arrange home visits with people. This was the first inspection of this service.

The service provides care and domiciliary support for older people and people with a learning disability who live in their own home in and around Tamworth.

There was a registered manager in 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.

The provider had systems in place to assess and monitor the quality of care. People were encouraged to give their feedback and this was used to drive improvements. Quality audits within the registered office had not been carried out to ensure the premises were safe.

Staff knew how to recognise the signs of abuse and knew what actions to take if they felt people were at risk. People’s risks were assessed and support plans included measures to reduce or prevent potential harm.

People received care and support from staff who were well trained and knew how people liked things done. People’s care records included information about how they wanted to be supported and this was reviewed to ensure it reflected any changes.

People received an agreed level of staff support at a time they wanted it and were happy with how the staff supported them. People had a regular team of staff who had the skills to meet their needs. People knew who was providing their support in advance and the provider was flexible and responsive to changes. People received their medicine and were supported to apply any cream they needed to keep well.

People consented to any care. Where concerns were identified about whether people had capacity to make decisions, action was taken to ensure decisions were being made in people’s best interests.

People were treated with care and kindness and staff were friendly and respectful. People benefitted from having support from staff who had a good understanding of their individual needs. People were positive about the way staff treated them. Staff listened to people’s views and they knew how to make a complaint or raise concerns.

People benefitted from receiving a service from staff who worked in an open and friendly culture and were happy in their work. Checks were carried out prior to staff starting work to ensure their suitability to work with people.

People felt the service was well managed and they were asked to express their views and be involved in decisions related to the planning of their care. People chose how support was provided and they were involved in the review of their care.

The provider had systems in place to assess and monitor the quality of care and encouraged people and their relatives to give their feedback and used this to drive improvements.