Care with Pride - Luton is a domiciliary care service, providing care to people living in their own homes.

At the last inspection, the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

The service has a registered manager. 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 safe because there were effective risk assessments in place, and systems to keep them safe from abuse or avoidable harm. There was sufficient numbers of staff to support people safely. Staff took appropriate precautions to ensure that people were protected from the risk of acquired infections. People’s medicines were managed safely, and there was evidence of learning from incidents.

People’s needs had been assessed regularly and they had care plans in place that took account of their individual needs, preferences, and choices. Staff had regular supervisions and they had been trained to meet people’s individual needs effectively. The requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 were being met, and 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 families were unable to provide support.

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 and were guided through regular input by the person receiving care to ensure the care provided continued to meet their individual needs, in a person centred way.

The provider had an effective system to handle complaints and concerns. Where people were able to remain in their own homes, staff ensured that they remained comfortable, dignified and pain-free at the end of their lives.

The service was well managed and the provider’s quality monitoring processes had been used effectively to drive continuous improvements. The registered manager provided stable leadership and effective support to the staff. They worked well with staff to promote a caring and inclusive culture within the service. Collaborative working with people, their relatives and other professionals resulted in positive care outcomes for people using the service.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

We undertook an announced inspection of Care with Pride, Suite 8B1 Britannia House, Leagrave Road on 20 October 2016. The service provides care and support to people living in their own homes, at the time of our inspection 11 people were being supported by Care with Pride, five of which were from a broker and were not directly commissioned to Care with Pride.

The service had a registered manager 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.

There were systems in place to keep people safe from harm. People we spoke with felt that staff knew how to keep them safe. The provider had undertaken risk assessments which were regularly reviewed to minimise potential harm to people using the service. There were appropriate numbers of staff employed to meet people’s needs and provide a safe and effective service. Staff we spoke with were aware of people’s needs, and provided people with person centred care.

Peoples care records were regularly updated to reflect changes to their circumstances and the provider kept abreast of those changes to ensure that any further support people may require was acted on. People were supported and encouraged to eat and drink well and where required the service supported people to make appointments with or attend health care services.

People confirmed that their privacy and dignity was respected by staff and that they were encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves in order for them to retain their independence and life skills. People were supported to make decisions for themselves. Where the provider had reason to believe that people were not able to make decisions for themselves, the provider had a system in place to ensure that referrals were sent to the local authority for assessment.

The provider did not have a robust recruitment process in place which ensured that staff were suitable to work in people’s homes. Staff had undertaken appropriate training, however we found that staff did not always received regular supervision and an annual appraisal, which would enabled them to meet people’s needs. Medicines were administered safely by staff who had received training. The provider had a system in place to ensure that complaints were recorded and responded to in a timely manner as well as an effective system to monitor the quality of the service they provided.