A Halesworth branch of a home care service has been rated as Good by inspectors after operating for one year.

Suffolk independent business First Choice Home Care’s branch in Halesworth supports older people, some of who are living with dementia, and people with physical disabilities, within their own homes.

In an inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), the branch was praised for the “caring and kind” approach from staff and management.

Teresa Forder, acting manager of the branch, said: “We have been made very welcome by the local community and we are proud of our dedicated team’s achievement.

“It has been a great year and we look forward to expanding our services.”

The branch, which supported 58 people in their own homes at the time of the inspection, was also recognised for the punctuality of their staff and the training given.

The report rated the service as Good in all five categories, as well as overall, including being safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led.

The report states: “People received a good service and felt safe with the support they received.

“Individual’s care needs were well known by the staff who were supporting them.

“People received caring and kind support from care staff. The management team also frequently delivered people’s care and therefore also knew people very well. This enabled them to lead by example.

“People were complimentary about staff and were positive about the caring relationships they were able to form with them.

“The service was run by a clearly dedicated management team who demonstrated kindness and a commitment to the needs of the peopl who used the service as well as the staff who worked for them.”

The domiciliary care provider offers a range of services, including cleaning, companionship, food preparation and palliative care.

It also provides specialist services for mental heathcare and wellbeing for young people.

Emily Baldwin, of First Choice Home Care, said: “Considerate, caring professional home care is our priority and it is our hard-working, specialist team approach taht enables us to deliver a consistently friendly service to our customers.”