Anchor Domiciliary Care

The service was run by a registered manager and they were present at our visit. 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 our last inspection on 14 March 2016 we rated the service good. At this inspection on 22 and 24 October we found the evidence continued to support the rating of good and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

People and their relatives told us they felt safe and comfortable. Staff continued to receive training in how to safeguard people.

Everyone was extremely positive about the range of activities and events on offer. The provider ran clubs for people and offered regular opportunities for people to meet and make friends. People were active, went out in the local area and took part in college courses and work experience.

Staff continued to be available in sufficient numbers and had received the training they required for their role. New staff were checked to make sure they were suitable to work with people.

People were supported to be as independent as possible which included being involved in household activities such as keeping their home clean, meal planning and preparation and doing their laundry.

The provider had acted on professional advice with regards to the management of medicines to make sure people received their medicines as prescribed.

Staff understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and how to put them into practice.

People were supported to maintain their health, access health services and were given advice about how to eat healthily.

People benefitted by being support by staff who were kind, compassionate and valued people's contributions. Staff knew people well including their preferences and supported people's individuality and diversity.

Changes had been made to care plans so that they were more user friendly. Assessments of risk continued to detail how people wished to be supported and staff understood how to follow this guidance to meet people's individual needs and keep them safe.

People had been supported at the end of their lives to have a comfortable death, with people who mattered to them.

The provider had a complaints procedure in place which was written in a format that people could understand. People who used the service and their relative were aware of how to make a complaint.

Staff felt well supported by the management team. People and their relatives said the service was well run. The service worked in partnership with other organisations and sought and acted on their advice to improve outcomes for people. The provider continued to have a quality assurance process in place which included gaining people's views about the service and how it could be improved.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

The five questions we ask about services and what we found