Age UK Wakefield District - Home Support Services

People's experience of the service and what we found: People were protected from the risk of abuse; people and relatives told us they felt safe. Risks posed to people were assessed. The service monitored accidents and incidents to enable them to learn lessons and mitigate future risks to people. People were supported by enough staff at the correct times. There had been no missed care calls and people told us staff were on time. Staff were recruited safely. People told us staff were kind and caring. Medicines were safely managed.

People's care plans were individualised and the service promoted person centred care. This provided good outcomes, for example increasing people's independence.

Staff felt supported in their roles. The registered manager completed staff supervisions and spot checks to ensure staff were competent. Team meetings provided staff with opportunities to raise concerns and make suggestions.

Governance systems and meetings ensured the provider had oversight of the service. The registered manager completed audits to monitor the quality and safety of the service. However, records audits were overdue and some records required signing. We have made a recommendation that the provider reviews their systems for auditing records.

People and relatives told us the service was well led. Feedback was sought from people and relatives and was used to improve the quality of care people received. Complaints and concerns were effectively managed.

Staff worked closely with external agencies to ensure people's health needs were met, this included district nurse teams, occupational therapists and social workers. The registered manager understood their roles under duty of candour and reported incidents to the relevant authorities where required.

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.

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