About the service: Helpers Homecare is a domiciliary care service. The service is registered to provide care and support for older people and younger adults who may experience dementia, sensory impairments, learning disabilities, physical impairments or mental health issues. At the time of this inspection 205 people were using the service.

People’s experience of using this service:

People were safe and protected from avoidable harm because staff knew how to identify and report any concerns relating to the risk of abuse. They were familiar with how to report concerns to agencies outside of the organisation. Risks to people`s health, safety and well-being were assessed and measures put in place to remove or reduce the risks. People were supported by staff who had been safely recruited through a robust process.

People’s medicines were managed safely. Staff had received appropriate training and had their competency assessed to help ensure they were sufficiently skilled and knowledgeable in this area. Staff had received training in infection control practices and personal protective equipment such as gloves and aprons was provided for them. The management team took appropriate actions following incidents and learning was shared with staff.

Before care delivery started the provider completed assessments to make sure people`s needs could be met by Helpers Homecare. Care plans were developed from these assessments for each person’s identified needs and staff had clear guidance on how to meet those needs. Staff received training and support to enable them to carry out their roles effectively.

People told us staff prepared simple meals for them as needed and encouraged people to take fluids to maintain their health and wellbeing. Staff and management knew people well and were able to promptly identify when people`s needs changed and sought professional advice appropriately. Staff were proactive in identifying if people were unwell and contacted appropriate healthcare professionals as needed. Mental capacity assessments were carried out where needed to establish if people making decisions affecting their lives had the capacity to do so.

People and their relatives praised the kind and caring nature of staff. People received consistent care from a small team of staff. Staff helped to relieve people’s distress and discomfort, and supported people to maintain personal relationships. They also helped to support people during times of emotional upheaval and supported people above and beyond their care responsibilities. People told us they knew about their care plans and they could decide what care and support they needed. People’s records were held securely in a locked cabinet within a locked office to help promote confidentiality.

People received care and support as they wished. People told us they would be confident to raise any concerns with the management team. However, everyone we spoke with during this inspection was satisfied with the care and support they received. The service provided support for people at the end of their lives to enable people to remain in their own homes.

The provider was committed to providing a high standard of care to the people they supported and understood their responsibilities under the Duty of Candour. People, their relatives and staff members spoke highly of the provider and registered manager and told us that they were always available and supportive. People told us that they were asked for their views about the quality of the service.

Rating at last inspection: At our last inspection, the service was rated “Good”. Our last report was published on 22 June 2016.

Why we inspected: This was a scheduled inspection based on the previous rating of the service.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme.

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

This inspection was carried out on 10 may 2016 and was announced. At their last inspection on 16 December 2013 they were found to meeting the standards we inspected.

Helpers Homecare provides personal care to people living in their own homes. At the time of our inspection, 200 people were receiving support from the service.

The service had a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. In this instance the registered manager was also the provider.

People received care and support that met their needs. There were individual care plans that gave guidance to staff to enable them to deliver this in a way that respected their choices, preferences and promoted their dignity.

People were supported by sufficient numbers of staff who had been recruited safely and had the appropriate skills for their role. Staff received regular support and supervision and the management team shared updates and lessons learned with them.

Staff knew how to identify abuse and risks to people and respond appropriately. People’s medicines were managed safely. The management team were available for guidance and support should it be needed. Everyone we spoke with was positive about the management of the service and the ethos of the service. Staff knew what was expected of them and people told us that they were all very kind and caring.

There were systems in place to monitor the quality of the service and address any shortfalls. People’s feedback was sought and this was responded to appropriately.

As part of our inspection of the service we spoke with six people who received services and two of their relatives. We visited three of the people at their homes.

The people we spoke with told us that their privacy and dignity was respected and that they were encouraged to be independent. They said that they felt consulted about their care and that their choices and preferences in relation to their care were respected. One person told us, “[They were] respected 100%” and that the staff were, “Really nice people [who] don’t leave anything out”.

Another person said that the staff had, “Been brilliant, very professional”.

People told us that they felt quite safe with staff in the house and that they respected their possessions. They said they felt that the staff had proper training and were competent. One person said that there is, “Not one who doesn’t know what they are doing.”

People said that they had good communication with the field supervisors and would have no problems with contacting them if they needed to discuss something.

We spoke with ten people who received a service from the agency, and with ten of their relatives. The majority of people we spoke with were very complimentary about the quality of the service they received from the agency. One person we spoke with told us: "They have never let me down at all". Another person told us: "They are very, very good. They understand what I need".

Staff we spoke with were knowledgeable about people's care and support needs and we observed staff speaking with people in an attentive and polite way. People we spoke with told us that carers were respectful of their possessions and that they felt safe when staff were providing their care and support.

Overall, care plans we looked at provided carers with comprehensive guidance about how to meet people's care and support needs safely.

Communications between people who used the service and the agency were good. People told us that they knew in advance who would be coming to see them. One relative told us that their family member: "Likes the fact that he always knows whose coming".

There were systems in place to seek people's feedback about the quality of the service they received. People we spoke with told us that they felt confident that they could raise any concerns they had with the agency and that action would be taken to address these.