Beige Healthcare Services is a domiciliary care service. They provide care and support to people living in their own homes so that they could live as independently as possible. Not everyone using this type of service receives regulated activity, 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. At the time of the inspection, five people were being supported by the service.

This announced comprehensive inspection took place between 19 December 2018 and 31 December 2018. This is the first inspection since the service registered with the Care Quality Commission on 22 December 2017.

There was a registered manager in post, who is also the nominated individual for the provider. 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 quality monitoring processes in place. They acknowledged that they needed to improve how they planned audits. The provider also needed to make sure staff had information about how people wanted to be supported at the end of their lives. People, relatives and staff were happy with the quality of the service.

There were effective risk assessments and systems to keep people safe from abuse or harm. Staff had been recruited safely and there were enough staff to support people safely. Staff took appropriate precautions to ensure people were protected from the risk of acquired infections. People’s medicines were managed safely, and there systems to help them learn from incidents.

People’s needs had been assessed and they had care plans that took account of their individual needs, preferences, and choices. Staff had been trained and appropriately supported to meet people’s individual needs effectively. The requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 were being met. Staff understood their roles and responsibilities to seek people’s consent prior to care and support being provided. Where required, people had been supported to have enough to eat and drink to maintain their health and wellbeing. They were also supported to access healthcare services when urgent care was needed.

People were supported by caring, friendly and respectful staff. They were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives, and the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

Staff regularly reviewed the care provided to people with their input to ensure that this continued to meet their individual needs, in a person-centred way. The provider had an effective system to handle complaints and concerns, but they had not received any complaints.