Home Instead Liverpool South

Senior Care Services Limited is a domiciliary care service providing personal care to people in their own homes. 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 the inspection, the service was providing personal care to 31 people.

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

People spoke positively about the staff and the quality of care they received. Staff were incredibly motivated to provide care that was kind, caring and compassionate and it was evident this ethos was promoted by all the management team. Without exception, people told us they received high quality and person-centred care and they valued their relationships with staff. The registered managers understood the need for people to be supported by staff who they knew, had developed relationships with and that they could trust, leading to good outcomes for people using the service.

We were told of many examples where staff had gone the extra mile to ensure people’s individual needs and wishes were met. Staff were very motivated and proud of the service they worked for. One staff member told us, “I would really recommend the company.”

Two registered managers were in post, one of whom was also the registered provider. They were committed to delivering outstanding care to people and continually looked for innovative ways to develop relationships with other professionals to achieve this. They also aimed to provide inclusive care to the local community and worked with local businesses to raise funds and awareness of issues relating to people living in the community.

The service was dedicated to providing care that put people at the centre of everything they did. People and their relatives were actively involved in the creation of care plans and regular reviews provided opportunity for people to share their views and inform any changes required. Visit times were based on people's preferred times and were adjusted when necessary to meet their changing needs. Staff were incredibly responsive and perceptive to people’s changing needs and support was adjusted when required to ensure people’s needs continued to be met.

The service was creative and innovative in supporting people to live well. They aimed to break the taboos associated with ageing and dementia and held regular events to provide people with information and advice on how to stay happy and healthy in older age. Staff worked hard to support people to continue their interests and maintain relationships that were important to them.

People told us they felt safe, well supported and would recommend the service to others. This support was provided by staff who had been safely recruited, who people knew well and who arrived when planned.

Staff told us they felt valued and well supported in their roles. New staff completed a four-day induction training course prior to providing any support to people and following mandatory training, additional courses were available specific to people’s needs. Staff were provided with the time and training required to provide person-centred, compassionate support.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. People’s consent to their care and treatment was sought and recorded in line with the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 30 December 2016).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

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.

Senior Care Services Ltd provides personal care and support to people living in their own home, in and around the Liverpool area. At the time of the inspection there were 40 people receiving a regulated activity from the registered provider.

There was a registered manager in post within the service who had been registered with the CQC since August 2016. 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.

People were protected from the risk of abuse. Staff had completed training in safeguarding vulnerable people and knew how to report any concerns they may have. The registered provider had a safeguarding policy in place which staff were familiar with.

Risk assessments were in place to ensure that people were protected from harm. These outlined the risks presented by people’s needs and provided information for staff on what they should do to maintain people’s wellbeing. There had been no accidents and incidents over the past 12 months; however, the registered manager told us that they would respond appropriately to these and act to prevent them reoccurring again in the future.

People told us they had received their medicines as prescribed. Staff had received training in the safe administration of medicines and medication administration records (MARs) were being signed to show that these had been given as required. This helped ensure people’s health and wellbeing was maintained.

People’s rights and liberties were protected. Staff had completed training in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA). People confirmed that staff offered them choice and control over their care, and commented that they promoted their independence.

People were protected from the risk of malnutrition. Care records contained relevant information about people’s dietary requirements. Staff demonstrated a good awareness of people needs in relation to their diet and people confirmed that staff provided them with the correct level of support.

Staff treated people with kindness and worked to ensure that their dignity and respect was maintained. People told us that they had developed positive relationships with staff, commenting that they consistently received support from the same staff. People told us that they were able to have a laugh with staff and enjoyed their company.

People’s care records provided up-to-date, accurate and relevant information about their care needs. These were personalised and provided staff with the information they needed to ensure they provided the correct level of support to people. People confirmed that staff had a good understanding of their needs and provided the support they needed.

The registered provider had a complaints process in place which people were aware of. People told us that they would feel comfortable raising their concerns with the registered manager. At the time of the inspection the registered provider had not received any complaints. The registered provider had received a number of compliments, and a recent survey showed that people were happy with the service.

The registered provider had good links with the local community. They had delivered training about dementia to other adult social care services and GP practices in the local area. They had also taken part in setting up a ‘dementia café’ at the local church which aimed to support people living with dementia and their relatives.

The registered provider is required by law to notify us of specific events which occur within the service. Our records showed that this had been done appropriately. This meant that the registered provider was acting in accordance with the law.