Helping Hands Stourbridge

At the time of the inspection, the domiciliary care service was supporting 52 people with their personal care needs.

We assessed the service against ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ guidance to make judgements about whether the provider guaranteed people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted.

We found there was awareness and regard for ‘Right support, right care and right culture’ guidance. For example, the provider demonstrated an awareness of the guidance, and people’s care records made reference to the principles underpinning this guidance.

The application of the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) were followed for people assessed as lacking mental capacity to make decisions regarding their care.

Policies and procedures were in place to support people and staff. People received effective transitions to the service.

There was a process to report concerns and we saw evidence people, relatives and staff were confident these would be taken seriously.

Staff were recruited safely in-line with good practice guidance and received training relevant to the needs of people they supported. Staff meetings took place on a regular basis.

Staff had a good awareness of people’s needs and preferences. The provider fostered a positive and inclusive environment for staff.

Systems for managing safety events were not always in place. Care plans and risk assessments did not always provide clear and detailed information about people’s needs. These were not always updated following safety events to reflect new information, risks and guidance.

Governance arrangements were not always robust or effective, which meant there were missed opportunities to share lessons and drive service improvement.