We carried out an announced inspection of Hazelwood Homecare on 27 September 2018. Hazelwood 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 people, younger adults, people with a physical disability or sensory impairment, people who misuse drugs or alcohol and people living with dementia. At the time of our inspection the service was providing support to 73 people.

At our last inspection, we rated the service good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of good and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

People told us they received safe care. We found that staff had been recruited safely and the staff we spoke with were aware of how to safeguard adults at risk. There were safe processes and practices in place for the management and administration of medicines.

People receiving support and their relatives told us staff visited them on time and stayed as long as they should. They liked the staff who supported them and told us they were supported by staff they knew.

Staff received an effective induction and appropriate training. People receiving support and their relatives felt that staff were competent and had the knowledge and skills to meet their needs.

People received appropriate support with eating, drinking and their healthcare needs. Referrals were made to community health and social care professionals to ensure that people’s needs were met.

People told us staff respected their right to privacy and dignity. They told us staff took their time when providing support and encouraged them to be independent.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way; the policies and systems at the service supported this practice. Where people lacked the capacity to make decisions about their care, the service had taken appropriate action in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

We saw evidence that people received care that reflected their needs, risks and preferences. People told us their care needs had been discussed with them and we found that, where appropriate, their relatives or representatives had been consulted.

People being supported and their relatives told us they were happy with how the service was being managed. They found the registered manager and staff approachable and helpful.

Staff felt well supported and fairly treated by the registered manager and the provider.

The registered manager regularly sought feedback from people being supported and their relatives. We noted that people had expressed a high level of satisfaction about all areas of the service.

Audits and checks of the service were completed regularly. We found the checks completed were effective in ensuring that appropriate levels of quality and safety were maintained at the service.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

We carried out an inspection of Hazelwood Homecare Limited on 4 and 5 May 2016. This was the first inspection of this service. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice to ensure the registered manager would be available when we visited.

Hazelwood Homecare Limited is a domiciliary care agency. The service provides personal care and support to adults with a variety of needs including older people, people living with dementia, people with mental ill health, physical disabilities or a terminal illness. The agency’s office is located in Rossendale in East Lancashire. At the time of our visits the service was providing support to 91people.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager at 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.

During our inspection people told us they felt safe when staff supported them. One person told us, “I always feel safe. The staff always know what they’re doing”. Staff had a good understanding of how to safeguard vulnerable adults from abuse and what action to take if they suspected abuse was taking place.

We saw evidence that staff had been recruited safely. They received an appropriate induction, effective training and regular supervision. Staff told us they felt well supported by the registered manager.

We found that people’s medicines were managed safely and people told us they received their medicines when they should. People were supported with the healthcare needs and were referred to healthcare professionals when appropriate.

People told us they were happy with the service they received from Hazelwood Homecare Limited. One person told us, “I’m very happy with the care. There haven’t been any problems”. People told us staff arrived on time and stayed for the full duration of the visit. People were involved in planning their care. Where people lacked the capacity to make decisions about their care, their relatives were involved.

People told us the staff who supported them were caring. One person said, “I have the same carer and she’s very caring. She does extra things that aren’t on the list for her to do”. People told us staff respected their privacy and dignity when providing care and encouraged them to be independent.

Staff understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and supported people to make everyday decisions about their care.

People were asked to give feedback about the service they received in annual questionnaires. We saw evidence that the registered manager used the feedback received to improve the service.

People told us they were happy with the way the service was being managed. One relative told us, “The service is well managed. We’ve had no concerns but I would ring if anything was wrong”.

We saw evidence that staff practice was observed regularly and checks were made of the care records they completed. These checks were effective in ensuring that appropriate levels of care and safety were maintained.