7 March 2012
During a routine inspection
People who use the service told us they had been involved in their care planning and had been able to make choices and decisions. We spoke with relatives of people who use the service. They told us they had been involved in their relative's care planning and decision making.
Staff were able to tell us how they met people's individual needs. They showed a good knowledge of the people they support, the care they provided and gave us examples of how they encouraged people to be independent, where possible.
People we spoke with told us they were happy with the arrangements that had been made in relation to security and staff entering their homes. They felt able to speak to the manager or staff if they were unhappy about something. They felt confident that the staff would deal with any matters to their satisfaction.
People we spoke with told us the staff were very good and met their needs appropriately. Comments included 'the staff know my needs very well'; 'I do appreciate the service'; 'the staff are all experienced'; 'the care staff I have are all very, very good'; 'I get on well with the staff' and 'the staff at the office help out and will make changes if needed'. One person said they felt new staff should work for the agency for longer, and gain more knowledge and confidence before going out on the more complex calls.
Care staff usually arrived at the correct time and people told us they usually had the same care staff. One person told us the same five staff had been visiting them for the past three years.
People who use the agency told us they were asked about the quality of the service. People told us their comments were listened to and acted upon. Comments included 'I have no complaints'; and 'it doesn't happen very often but any problems are put right immediately'.
We spoke with Torbay Care Trust who told us there were currently no performance issues with the agency. They told us that the agency had addressed any issues, which had been raised, appropriately.