This inspection took place on 24 August 2016 and was announced. At the last inspection in July 2014 we found the provider was meeting the regulations we looked at.

Rani Care C.I.C is an agency providing personal care to people in their own homes in the Leeds area. It is a social enterprise and not for profit organisation. They provide support to older people from all communities. However they specialise in offering support to people from south Asian communities to meet their specific cultural, language and religious needs. They have a multi-lingual staff team.

There was 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People who used the service and their relatives all told us they were happy with the support they or their family member received from the service. People told us they felt safe with their care workers and the care they were provided with. They said they received a good standard of care.

All the staff we spoke with and the registered manager showed a commitment to providing good quality person centred care. People told us the service was reliable and staff were kind and caring.

There were systems and procedures in place to protect people from the risk of harm. Staff were aware of the different types of abuse and what would constitute poor practice.

Staff received training in administration of medicines and systems in place ensured people received their medicines safely. However, some improvements were needed to the records of medication administration to ensure instructions for medications were always clear.

Where needed people who used the service received support from staff to ensure their nutritional and health needs were met.

The registered manager and staff we spoke with had an understanding of the principles and their responsibilities in accordance with the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005.

Care and support was provided by appropriately trained staff. Staff received support and supervision to help them understand how to deliver good care.

There were systems in place for responding to people’s concerns and complaints. People told us they knew how to complain and felt confident the agency would respond and take action to support them.

There were systems in place to monitor and improve the quality of the service provided. People who used the service, relatives and staff all spoke highly of the registered manager and their commitment to the service and people who used it.

Our inspection looked at our five questions; is the service caring? Is the service responsive? Is the service safe? Is the service effective? Is the service well led?

Below is a summary of what we found. The summary is based on our observations during the inspection, speaking with people using the service, speaking with the staff supporting them and looking at records.

If you want to see the evidence supporting our summary please read the full report.

Is the service safe?

There was an effective recruitment and selection processes in place. Staff received a good induction before they commenced work.

One person we spoke with told us, “The staff are lovely.” Another person told us, “I feel safer with their agency as they are able to communicate with me, the last agency could not provide a carer who could speak my language.”

We found adequate quality monitoring systems were in place. This ensured the risks to people were identified and reduced, to be able to continually improve.

Appropriate arrangements were in place to protect people who used the service from the risk of abuse.

Is the service effective?

People’s health and care needs were reviewed and care plans detailed how to meet people’s needs. The manager told us the plans would be reviewed when needs changed.

One relative we spoke with told us, “The staff respect my relative and maintain their dignity I am very happy with the service.”

Is the service caring?

We observed care workers interacted positively with people who used the service. Conversations were inclusive and staff gave people time to talk and respond to questions.

One relative told us they were very pleased with the service provided. They told us, “My relative is very happy with the service it means they are able to stay at home to be cared for and hot have to go into a home.”

Is the service responsive?

Staff we spoke with who provided care to people told us they had been involved in the care plans and understood the care that was required.

The manager told us that if people required changes to the call times this was facilitated. They said they wanted to provide an individualised person centred care package.

One person told us their carer had visited when they were unwell so they had accompanied them to hospital. The carer had stayed with them until a relative arrived. They said, “I was not left alone.”

Is the service well-led?

The agency is new and had only a few people who used the service; therefore the manager was also working providing care. The manager told us when they have more people who they provide a service to they will recruit additional staff to ensure there was enough staff to meet people’s needs.

The staff we spoke with told us they enjoyed working for the agency; they were supported and listened to and the manager was always approachable. They told us they had time to read care plans and understand people’s needs.