This inspection took place with a visit to the provider's office on 6 October 2016. We also completed telephone interviews with four people using the service and two relatives on 7 October 2016. We reviewed information received from staff by email on 14 October 2016.

Heritage Healthcare Epping Forest is registered to provide personal care to people who live in their own home. There were 23 people receiving a service at the time of our inspection.

A registered manager was not 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 registered manager and manager had resigned recently and we were assisted by the Nominated Individual (refer to in the report as the provider), another director of the company and the franchise support manager. Systems were in place to monitor and assess the quality of the service people received, however improvement was needed to ensure they were fully completed and in a timely manner.

People and their relatives felt confident that people were safe and secure when receiving care in their own homes. Staff knew how to identify potential abuse and report concerns. People were supported to take their medicines safely. Potential risks to people’s health and safety were being identified and managed effectively to support people to have as much independence as possible while keeping them safe. Robust staff recruitment processes were in place. There were sufficient numbers of suitable staff available to meet people’s individual needs.

People received their care and support from a staff team that had a full understanding of people's care needs and the skills and knowledge to meet them. People's consent was obtained prior to support being given and staff were familiar with the Mental Capacity Act and how this may affect them in their role. Staff respected people’s right to make their own decisions. People were provided with appropriate levels of support to eat and drink and maintain their health and wellbeing.

People’s dignity and privacy was respected and people found the staff to be reliable, friendly and caring. People and their relatives where appropriate, were fully involved in the planning, delivery and reviews of the support provided. Care records overall included people’s preferences and individual needs so that staff had information on how to give people the support that they needed. People confirmed they received the care they required.

People knew the provider and the other director and found them to be approachable and available. People had the opportunity to say how they felt about the service provided.