We inspected this service on 21 and 22 September 2016. The service provides care to older people in their own homes. The service is available in the South Staffordshire region. At the time of the inspection 21 people were using the service. The service had not been inspected since registering with us in March 2014.

The service had a registered manager in post who was also the sole 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 systems that were in place to monitor and improve the quality of the service were not always effective. When concerns were identified action had not been taken to make improvements.

People told us they felt safe and were happy with the way they were treated. When needed concerns had been reported appropriately and staff knew how to recognise and report potential abuse. Risks to people had been identified and staff had the information available to ensure they supported people in a safe way. There were sufficient staff to offer support to people and people did not feel their care was rushed. There were procedures in place to ensure people received their medicines as prescribed.

We found that staff had an understanding of gaining consent from people and when people lacked the capacity to make certain decisions we saw mental capacity assessments had been completed. People were involved with planning and reviewing their care and families also felt involved.

People were happy with the staff and felt they were treated in a caring and kind way. People told us staff knew them well and staff received an induction and training that helped them to support people. People were encouraged to be independent and their privacy and dignity was upheld in their homes. When people needed support with mealtimes or access to health professionals it was provided for them.

The provider sought the opinions of people who used the service and used this information to bring about changes. People were happy with the service they received and knew how to complain if needed. The provider had a system in place for managing complaints. Staff felt listened to and received support through meetings. The registered manager understood their responsibilities around registration with us.