Archived: Headway Suffolk Ltd Also known as Ipswich and East Suffolk Headway

Headway Suffolk Limited is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care and support to people who live in their own homes. There were eight people using the service at the time of our inspection.

The service had a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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.

People were safe using the service because staff were trained in safeguarding and they knew how to keep people safe from avoidable harm. There was enough staff to safely meet people’s needs. People had individualised risk assessments that gave guidance to staff on keeping them safe and their medicines were managed appropriately, where required. The provider had policies and procedures in place for the safe recruitment of new staff.

Staff were knowledgeable about people’s care needs and were trained to meet these needs. They sought people’s consent before providing care, and they understood the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. People were supported with the preparation of their food and drinks.

People were able to express their views and be actively involved in making decisions about their care. Staff were caring, friendly and supportive. They were also respectful of people’s dignity and privacy. People’s needs had been identified prior to them starting to use the service, and were reviewed regularly. People were supported in a personalised way and they all had individualised care plans in place.

Staff were supported in their role and to take part in the development of the service. Regular audits and surveys were carried out to monitor and manage the quality of the service.

We visited the agency office where we spoke with the registered manager and the Chief Executive Officer. We looked at records held in the agency office including care plans, medication administration records, staff recruitment records and systems used to monitor the quality of the service. During our inspection we spoke with two people who used the service and we also spoke with three care staff. After our inspection we telephoned three people who used the service.

Most people who needed care staff to administer their medicines received their medicines safely. However, some people were receiving medication assistance from care staff that required clinical training. Although general training had been completed these staff members had not been signed off as competent by a clinician. The provider took corrective action during our inspection to safeguard people from harm.

The agency had robust systems in place to seek people's views on the service and identify any areas where improvements were necessary.

People told us that they were involved in all matters concerning the development and review of their care. The service kept them informed on all matters about the rota and any changes. One person told us, "The staff are always on time. They do things in the way I want."

People we spoke with said how good the staff were. One person said," I trust the carers." Another said,"Some of them are exceptional." We saw evidence that staff received appropriate training, often related to the specific needs of one person using the service.

The provider asked people for their views and monitored the work of the staff to ensure that the care was of a high quality.