21 August 2023
During a routine inspection
Bluebird Care (Stevenage & North Herts) is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to 43 people at the time of the inspection.
Not everyone who used the service received personal care. 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.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People were kept safe from avoidable harm because staff knew them well and understood how to protect them from abuse. The registered manager and staff worked well with other agencies to do so.
Risk assessments detailed how to manage identified risks, whilst providing the least restrictive level of support.
People received medicines when they needed them by skilled staff.
People received support from staff who were trained and had supported them for a long period of time so were aware of people's needs. Staff received specific training relating to people's health and well-being.
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 said they felt listened to and respected. People and relatives said staff were kind and caring. Staff showed commitment when speaking about people they supported.
People were happy with the support that was provided to them and that it met their needs.
The provider was able to provide documents in an accessible format for people if they required it.
The registered manager had a good understanding of people they supported and had a passion for wanting to deliver person-centred care. The registered manager had quality assurance systems in place and these systems were reliable and effective in identifying what improvements were needed.
People and staff were involved in shaping the service being provided and felt listened to.
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 6 December 2017)
Why we inspected
This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.