This inspection was carried out on 26 January 2017 and was announced. We told the registered manager that we would be coming two days before our visit, as we wanted to make sure senior staff would be available. This was the first inspection conducted of the service since they registered in 2015.

TLC Homecare Solutions Ltd provides domiciliary care and support for approximately 20 people, some of whom receive support with personal care.

There was a registered manager in post at the time of our inspection. 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.

At this inspection we found that people’s medicines were managed safely, although improvement was required to ensure the support people received with their medicines was clearly and accurately recorded. There were sufficient staff deployed by the service to safely meet people’s needs and the provider undertook employment checks prior to new staff starting work to ensure they were of good character and suitable for the roles they were applying for.

Risks to people had been assessed and action taken by staff to manage identified risks, although improvement was required to ensure risk assessments comprehensively covered all potential areas of risk to people. The provider had already identified the scope of risk assessments as an area for improvement and was in the process of rolling out updated documentation at the time of our inspection.

People were protected from the risk of abuse because staff were aware of the signs to look for and the action to take if they suspected abuse had occurred. Staff received training and supervision in support of their roles and people told us they considered staff to be competent and well trained. Staff were aware of the importance of seeking consent from the people they supported and told us people had capacity to make decisions about the care and support they received for themselves.

People were supported to access healthcare services by staff if required and staff supported people to maintain a balanced diet where such support was included as part of their care plan. People and relatives told us that staff were kind and considerate, and that their privacy and dignity were respected. Staff demonstrated a good knowledge of the people they supported and involved them in day to day decisions about their care.

People were aware of how to make a complaint but told us they had not needed to do so. They had care plans in place which had been discussed with them and were reviewed on a regular basis. Staff provided people with care which reflected their individual needs and processes. Staff and people spoke positively about the management of the service and the registered manager. The provider had systems in place to seek feedback from people, and to monitor the quality and safety of the service.