Esteem Care Manchester Ltd

Able Care and Support Services Ltd is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to people in their own homes including a group of people living in an extra care housing project. Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided. At the time of this inspection the service was providing personal care to 86 people.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People who used the service received a very high quality of care from an exceptionally well led service. We received extremely positive feedback from people, relatives and professionals on how staff had developed caring relationships with people and their relatives. People consistently told us how they were supported with great kindness and respect.

The culture of the service was one of building positive relationships with people, not only making sure people were safe, but were happy and had a good quality of life. People spoke about looking forward to the visits from staff. One person had commented in their customer satisfaction survey, “I cannot thank you all enough for what you have done for me. I love each and every one of you, I really do.”

People were placed at the centre of the service and were consulted on every level. Respect for privacy and dignity was at the heart of culture and values of the service. Everyone told us staff went out of their way to involve people in deciding on how they wanted to be cared for and supported.

Relatives told us the service had a positive effect in people’s lives. For instance, one relative said, “[Staff] treat my parents so well. Mum has started singing again because all the staff sing with her. Lovely to hear her sing.”

The training provided to staff was of a particularly high standard, and this had proven very beneficial for people. For instance, the staff induction training ‘Boot Camp’ made sure staff shared the values of care, compassion, communication, courage, competence and commitment from the very start of their employment. Staffs’ specialist training in monitoring the health of people with particular health conditions had helped several people to stay in their own homes, where they wanted to be.

People were supported consistently by the same staff and regular checks on staff and their ability to do their jobs in a safe way meant people could be reassured they were receiving high quality care.

The service was especially well run. Staff and the registered manager shared the visions and values of the service and these were embedded within service delivery. There were systems to assess the quality of the service provided.

The service had won several nationally recognised awards. This included an award for providing a particularly high standard of care and support to people who were living with dementia, and another award, for caring for people who were at the end of their lives.

Staff worked in partnership with external health and social care professionals to ensure they supported people well. There was a very strong emphasis on continuous improvement. And the lessons learnt from incidents and people’s feedback where used to improve the service further.

People and their relatives told us they received very safe care. Staff understood their responsibilities in protecting people from the risk of harm. Risks to people's well-being and their environment were detailed and updated when circumstances changed. People received support to take their medicines safely and as prescribed.

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

Rating at last inspection:

Good. The report was published in December 2016.

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.

Able Care and Support Services Limited provides care and support to people in their own homes. On the day of our inspection there were 24 people using the service.

The service had a registered manager in place. 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 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

Able Care and Support Services Limited was last inspected by CQC on 11 June 2013 and was compliant with the regulations in force at that time.

Processes were in place to record and investigate accidents and incidents. Management and staff were aware of their responsibilities with regard to safeguarding vulnerable people and appropriate policies and procedures were in place. Risk assessments described potential risks and the safeguards in place to protect people who used the service and staff. Appropriate arrangements were in place for the administration and storage of medicines.

Staff were suitably trained and received regular supervisions and appraisals. The registered provider had an effective recruitment and selection procedure in place and carried out relevant pre-employment checks when they were recruiting staff.

The registered provider was working within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA).

People were protected from the risk of poor nutrition and staff were aware of people’s nutritional needs. Care records contained evidence of visits to and from external health care specialists.

People who used the service, and family members, were highly complementary about the standard of care provided by Able Care and Support Services Limited. Care was planned and delivered in a way that was personalised to each person.

People’s end of life care needs were catered for and staff were trained in how to provide end of life care. Staff treated people with dignity and respect and helped to maintain people’s independence by encouraging them to care for themselves where possible.

Care records indicated that people’s needs were assessed before they started using the service and care plans were written in a person centred way. Staff sought alternative methods in supporting people with their care needs and went the extra mile when providing care and support.

Staff were aware of people’s interests and hobbies and people were protected from social isolation. People who used the service, and family members, were aware of how to make a complaint and no formal complaints had been recorded at the service.

Staff felt supported by the registered manager and were comfortable raising any concerns. People who used the service, family members and staff were regularly consulted about the quality of the service. Family members told us they could contact the management at any time and the management were approachable and understanding.

People who used the service and their relatives were supported to be involved in the service they received and how it was provided. One relative told us: 'We've been involved all the way through'.

Care plans were person centred and contained clear guidance to staff about the support people needed.

Staff knew how to identify different types of abuse and described what they would do if they had any concerns.

A range of pre-employment checks were completed for new staff in line with regulatory requirements. Staff received a range of training and were supported to fulfil their role.

The provider performed spot checks and observations of staff practice and carried out quality monitoring telephone calls in order to assess the quality of the service provided.