Archived: Heart of England Mencap - 1 Old Road

Updated 23 September 2016

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

The inspection took place on 15 August 2016 and was unannounced. The inspection was conducted by one inspector.

We reviewed information received about the service, for example the statutory notifications the provider had sent us. A statutory notification is information about important events, which the provider is required to send to us by law. Before the inspection, the provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We found the PIR reflected the service provided. We also contacted the local authority commissioners to find out their views of the service provided. These are people who contract care and support services paid for by the local authority. They had no concerns about the service.

During our inspection visit we spoke with the provider’s deputy operations manager, a team leader and four support workers. We also spoke with three people who used the service. We observed care and support being delivered in communal areas and we observed how people were supported during dinner. Following our inspection visit we spoke with two relatives and one health professional. Health care professionals are people who have expertise in particular areas of health, such as nurses or consultant doctors.

Some of the people living at the home were not able to tell us, in detail, about how they were cared for and supported because of their complex needs. However, we reviewed three people’s care plans and daily records to see how their care and treatment was planned and delivered. We looked at other records related to people’s care and how the service operated, including medicine records, staff recruitment records, the provider’s quality assurance audits and records of complaints.

Updated 23 September 2016

We visited the offices of Heart of England Mencap – 1 Old Road on 15 August 2016. The inspection was unannounced.

Heart of England Mencap – 1 old Road provides accommodation and personal care for up to four people with learning disabilities or autistic spectrum disorder. The provider leases the property from a housing association and is responsible for managing it. At the time of our visit the service supported three people. The service was last inspected on 10 July 2013 when we found they were meeting the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations.

The service is required to have 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. At the time of our inspection, there was no registered manager in post because they had left the service two weeks prior to our inspection visit. There was a new manager in post, however at the time of our visit, they were on annual leave. In the absence of the manager, their responsibilities were being overseen by the previous manager, two team leaders and the provider’s deputy operations manager.

People told us they felt safe using the service and staff understood how to protect people from abuse. There were processes to minimise risks associated with people’s care to keep them safe. This included the completion of risk assessments and checks on staff to ensure their suitability to work with people who used the service.

There were enough suitably trained staff to deliver care and support to people. A health professional we spoke with provided positive feedback about the care provided by staff. Staff received an induction and a programme of training to support them in meeting people’s needs effectively. Staff understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA), they respected people’s decisions and gained people’s consent before they provided personal care.

People told us staff were kind and caring and had the right skills and experience to provide the care and support they required. Staff treated people in a way that respected their dignity and promoted their independence.

People were involved in planning how they were cared for and supported. Care was planned to meet people’s individual needs and preferences and care plans were reviewed. People knew how to complain and were able to share their views and opinions about the service they received.

Staff felt well supported by the registered manager and were confident they could raise any concerns or issues, knowing they would be listened to and acted on. There were checks in place to ensure good standards of care were maintained.