- Homecare service
Cherry Care Services Limited - Northampton
Assessment report published 14 September 2026
Contents
Ratings
Our view of the service
The assessment was carried out from 11 to 21 August 2026. The assessment was carried out due to the age of the previous rating for the service. At the time of the assessment nine people were receiving support with personal care.
As the service supports people with a learning disability and autistic people, we assessed them against our guidance for supporting people with a learning disability or autism, Right Support, Right Care, Right Culture. The service was mostly working in line with the principles of Right Support, Right Care, Right Culture. However, additional work was required to ensure people were consistently supported to have choice, control or meaningful involvement in their care. People were not always supported to identify and plan for future goals and aspirations.
The service was rated good overall.
People spoke positively about the support they received and told us staff treated them with dignity and respect. Feedback from people and relatives was positive, and there was evidence that staff knew people well and supported them in accordance with their preferences, routines and wishes. Staff worked collaboratively with healthcare professionals and other agencies to help ensure people experienced positive outcomes and continuity of care.
Staff were recruited safely, received regular supervision and training, and described a positive and supportive culture. There were effective arrangements in place to manage risks associated with the environment, equipment and infection prevention and control. Processes were in place to learn from incidents, complaints and feedback, and staff told us that learning was shared across the service. Leaders were visible and approachable, and people and staff consistently spoke positively about the management team. One staff member said, “The manager is approachable and attentive to staff and people.”
However, improvements were needed to ensure governance systems were fully effective in identifying and addressing all areas requiring development. Whilst audits and monitoring processes were in place, these had not consistently identified some of the concerns found during this assessment. Some risk assessments lacked sufficient detail to guide staff in managing risks specific to the individual. Improvements were also needed to ensure that people's involvement in decisions about their care, communication needs, future planning and outcomes monitoring were consistently evidenced. In addition, further work was required to strengthen processes around safeguarding documentation, mental capacity assessments and some delegated healthcare competencies.
Despite these areas for improvement, we did not identify evidence that people had experienced avoidable harm or that people were placed at significant risk because of the issues found. Staff demonstrated a good understanding of people's needs, people told us they felt safe and well supported, and the concerns identified related primarily to the quality and consistency of recording, oversight and documentation. Service leaders were aware of several of the areas requiring development and had already begun taking action to address them.
People's experience of this service
People spoke positively about the care and support they received and told us they felt safe, well cared for and treated with kindness and respect. People described staff as friendly, caring and reliable, and told us staff arrived on time and supported them in the way they preferred. One person said, “Everything they do makes me feel safe. I get on well with them.”
People's dignity, privacy and choice were respected. Staff demonstrated a good understanding of people's individual needs and preferences and were able to explain how they involved people in decisions about their day-to-day support. People told us they were offered choices and felt listened to by staff. We saw examples of positive relationships between people and staff, with people appearing comfortable and relaxed around staff.
People experienced continuity of care from a stable staff team who knew them well. They told us support was consistent and that staff understood their routines and the assistance they required. Where people needed support from healthcare professionals or other services, there was evidence that staff worked collaboratively with others to help maintain people's wellbeing and achieve positive outcomes.
People and their representatives had opportunities to provide feedback about the service. Satisfaction surveys had been completed and there was evidence that feedback was reviewed and used to identify achievements and any areas for development. People felt able to raise concerns and were confident these would be listened to. One person said, “I would talk to the staff and manager, but I haven’t got any concerns.”
While people's care plans contained information about their needs and preferences, there were occasions where records could be further developed to provide a more detailed picture of the person. For example, some care records would benefit from additional information about people's interests, hobbies and aspirations. This would help ensure people are consistently supported in the most personalised way possible and are fully enabled to participate in decisions about their care.
Overall, people's experience of the service was positive. They told us they felt safe, valued and supported by caring staff who knew them well. Although improvements were required in some areas of recording, planning and documentation, we did not identify evidence that people had come to harm because of the issues found. People's feedback indicated they were happy with the support they received and experienced good outcomes from the service.