About the service:

A & E Witt Limited, also known as Bluebird Care Dudley, Wyre Forest & Malvern Hills and called that throughout this report, is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats. It provides a service mainly to older adults but can also cater for people with dementia, a mental health need, a sensory impairment and younger adults. At the time of this inspection, Bluebird Care Dudley Wyre Forest & Malvern Hills was supporting 24 people living in their own homes.

Not everyone using Bluebird Care Dudley Wyre Forest & Malvern Hills receives regulated activity; the Care Quality Commission (CQC) only inspects the service being received by people provided with ‘personal care’; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided.

People’s experience of using this service:

At this inspection we found the evidence the service met all the characteristics of Good in all areas inspected. More information is in the full report.

People were safe because there were effective risk assessments in place, and systems to keep them safe from abuse or avoidable harm. The provider had suitable systems in place to protect people from abuse including accidents and incidents.

Medicine administration was managed safely. Protocols or detailed instructions for the administration of ‘as required’ medicines were in place.

There were sufficient numbers of trained staff to support people safely. Recruitment processes were robust and helped to ensure staff were appropriate to work with vulnerable people.

People’s needs were thoroughly assessed before starting with the service. People and their relatives, where appropriate, had been involved in the care planning process.

Staff were competent and had the skills and knowledge to enable them to support people safely and effectively. Staff received the training and support they needed to carry out their roles effectively. Staff received regular supervisions and annual appraisals were planned.

People were supported in a friendly and respectful way. People and their relatives were complimentary about the staff and their caring attitude. People told us staff took their time when caring out care and support. Staff were patient and did not rush.

People’s care plans were person-centred and provided staff with the information they needed to provide care and support in a way that met people’s needs and preferences. There was evidence that care plans were reviewed regularly or as people’s needs changed.

People knew how to make a complaint, although no formal complaints had been made to the service. There was an effective complaints process in place to deal with any complaints that might be raised in the future.

People and their relatives told us they were extremely satisfied with the care provided. They said that there was good communication between themselves and the service.

There were processes in place to monitor the safety and quality of the service and the registered manager explored ways to continuously improve the quality of care. The provider worked in partnership with people’s families and other people involved in their care, for example other health professionals.

Rating at last inspection:

This was our first rating of this service. Bluebird Care Dudley Wyre Forest & Malvern Hills was first registered with CQC in August 2017.

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection to provide the service with its first rating.

Follow up:

We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit in line with our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk