Bluebird Care (Bury & Bolton)

Bluebird Care (Bury & Bolton) is a domiciliary care service providing personal care to people in their own houses and flats in the community. At the time of our inspection there were 75 people using the service. 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 inspection, the service was providing personal care to 66 people.

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

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. Right support, right care, right culture is the statutory guidance which supports CQC to make assessments and judgements about services providing support to people with a learning disability and/or autistic people. We considered this guidance as there were people using the service who have a learning disability and or who are autistic.

People felt safe, and staff knew what to do if they thought people were at risk. Staff managed people's medication safely. Staff recruitment processes were robust and staffing levels ensured peoples' needs were met. The provider followed current infection prevention and control guidance.

People's needs were assessed, and support was coordinated, innovative, and personalised. Staff were trained to provide support whilst promoting independence. Staff approaches promoted dignity & respect.

Staff were trained and competent in providing individualised support whilst promoting people’s independence. The registered manager ensured staff were well supported and able to carry out their roles effectively. People were involved in decisions about their support needs and the service was committed to working in partnership with healthcare professionals to improve and maintain people's health and wellbeing.

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 told us staff were polite and always asked before providing support. Staff approaches promoted dignity & respect. Staff knew how to support people to ensure end of life needs were met.

People and family members knew how to make a complaint. They were confident their complaint would be listened to and acted upon quickly. Lessons were learned when concerns were raised, and these outcomes were communicated to staff.

The provider was open and honest in its approach to supporting people. They were in regular contact with people receiving support to ensure they obtained feedback on the quality of support provided.

The registered manager ensured systems were in place to monitor and audit the quality and running of the service.

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 28 November 2017)

Why we inspected

This inspection was a planned inspection based on the date the service was last inspected.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.

At the time of our inspection 155 people were using the service, covering a wide range of care and support arrangements in their own homes. No children were using the service.

There was a registered manager in post. 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. The registered manager was present throughout our inspection.

People told us they had no concerns about their safety. Staff had received training in safeguarding adults. Staff were encouraged to report any abuse they witnessed or suspected.

Systems were in place to help ensure that only staff suitable to work with children and vulnerable adults were employed by the service.

There was a stable staff team in place, who knew people well. This helped to ensure consistency and continuity of care for people. There were sufficient numbers of support workers available to ensure the safe running of the service.

Detailed risk management plans were in place to guide staff on the action to take to mitigate the identified risks to people.

Systems were in place to help ensure the safe administration of medicines, including where people who used the service or family members took responsibility for their own medicines.

Staff had access to protective clothing such as disposable gloves and aprons when needed. This helped to the reduced the risk of cross infection.

Staff received the induction, training and supervision they required to be able to provide safe and effective care.

Most people who used the service had the capacity to make decisions for themselves. Staff had received training in the Mental Capacity Act and this helped them to understand their responsibilities where people lacked capacity.

People chose what they wanted to eat and drink. Where there was an identified risk of malnutrition people’s food and fluid was monitored and advice from the appropriate healthcare professionals was requested.

People were supported to maintain good physical and mental health through regular monitoring by both staff and external professionals.

Feedback from people who used the service was very positive about the care and support they received from members of the staff team.

During the Macmillan coffee morning we observed warm and friendly interactions between staff and people who used the service.

People were encouraged to provide feedback on the service they received. Any complaints or suggestions were acted upon to help improve people’s experience of the service.

Staff we spoke with told us they enjoyed working in the service and felt valued by colleagues, the nominated individual, the registered manager and the management team.

Quality assurance systems were in place including regular audits and checks completed by the registered manager.