We inspected St Anne’s Apartment’s on the 22 and 23 June 2015 and this was an announced inspection which meant the provider knew we were coming. St Anne’s Apartment is an extra care supported living service that provides care and support to adults with a learning disability and mental health needs. The service is staffed 24 hours and had the governing ethos of a service that is flexible, a home for life whilst supporting people to be autonomous and independent. There were 12 people using the service at the time of our inspection. The age range of people receiving support varied from 21 – 85 years old.
People who used the service lived in their own flats. Five flats were two bedded and two were single bedded flats. There was also a communal dining area and kitchen along with outside gardens. The flats were all located within one building along with the services office. The Care Quality Commission inspects the care and support the service provides, but does not inspect the accommodation they live in.
St Anne’s Apartment’s belongs to the organisation the Frances Taylor Foundation. The Frances Taylor Foundation is part of the UK charity the Poor Servants of the Mother of God. As a faith based charity the underlying principles of care and respect for each individual informs all of the organisations work. The charity has numerous services across London, Sussex and Merseyside.
There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission 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.
Systems were in place for the recording of incidents and accidents. However, incidents and accidents were not monitored overall for any emerging trends and themes. Feedback was regularly sought from people, support workers and relatives. In March 2015, satisfaction surveys were sent out to support workers and relatives, however, the feedback had not been collated to monitor for any trends or identify how improvements to the service could be made. Despite the above concerns, people received the care that met their needs. However, we have identified the above as areas of practice that needs improvement.
People were thoroughly involved in the inspection. People invited us into their flats to talk about the care and support they received. People had written us letters and support workers had spent time with people explaining the inspection process and informing people of the role of the Care Quality Commission.
People spoke passionately about living at St Anne’s Apartments. One person told us. “This is one of the best services I’ve been in. It’s the staff that make the difference.” Another person told us, “This place was a God send for me and my family.”
There were enough qualified, skilled and experienced support workers to meet people's needs. Staffing levels were calculated according to people’s changing needs and ensured continuity of one to one support. Thorough recruitment practice was followed to ensure support workers were suitable for their role. People were involved in the recruitment process, sitting on interview panels and posing questions they wished to ask potential support workers.
People received an outstanding level of support that met their psychological needs. The ethos of the care was very much person centred and people received support that enabled them to reach their goals, learn new skills and promote their well-being.
Support workers provided the support that people required which enabled them to manage their medicines safely; people were encouraged to self-medicate and stored their medication in a locked cabinet in their flats.
People received support with meal preparation, food shopping and menu planning. Support workers worked with people to promote their independence with cooking or provided full assistance when needed. Support workers had received training on the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and always sought and obtained people’s consent before they provided support. When people declined or changed their mind, their wishes were respected.
The registered manager and the support workers approach promoted an environment where people could develop new skills. They promoted people’s independence, encouraged them to do as much as possible for themselves and to make their own decisions. Support workers and people spoke highly of the registered manager. One support worker told us, “She’s the best manager I’ve ever had.”