Hales Group Limited - Peterborough

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.

There were enough staff employed to meet people's care needs. They had been recruited well, had received appropriate training and felt well-supported by their managers. Staff knew how to report any concerns so that people were protected from avoidable harm. Potential risks to people were assessed and staff followed guidance to minimise the risks. People felt safe with the staff. They received their medicines safely and staff followed infection prevention and control procedures.

Staff were very happy to be working for Hales Group Limited – Peterborough. They felt well-trained and supported to be able to do their job well. Staff assisted some people with their meals and worked with external care professionals to promote people's health and well-being. 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.

Staff treated people with respect and upheld their privacy and dignity. People and their relatives described staff as amazing, caring and kind and gave many examples of how staff had gone 'over and above' their role to make life more comfortable for people.

Care plans were written with the person and their relatives: they detailed the care each person needed and how that person wanted their care delivered by the staff. Information was available in accessible formats and people knew who to contact if they had any concerns.

We received positive feedback from people, their relatives and staff about the service and the way it was managed. The registered manager was approachable and very well-liked. She managed the service well and understood her regulatory responsibilities to inform people if anything went wrong and to notify CQC about specific events. Audits were carried out to ensure a high-quality service was provided and people were encouraged to put forward ideas for improvement. One relative told us, "I would definitely recommend this company. We are so proud and happy to have them looking after our [family member]."

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