Archived: Supported Lifestyles Head Office

Updated 10 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 9 August 2016, with visits on 10,11 and 12 August 2016 to people who use the service. We told the service two days before our visit that we would be coming to ensure the people we needed to talk to would be available. This inspection was conducted by one inspector.

Before the inspection, we reviewed the information we held about the service; this included information we had received from third parties. 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 also asked the local authority who commission the service for their views on the care and service provided by the service.

We visited and spoke with seven people in their homes and spoke with four members of staff and the manager. We checked four people’s care and medicine records in the office and with their permission, the records kept in their home. We also saw records about how the service was managed. These included three staff recruitment and monitoring records, staff rotas, training records, audits and quality assurance records as well as a range of the provider’s policies and procedures.

Updated 10 September 2016

The inspection took place on 9 August 2016, with visits on 10,11 and 12 August 2016 to people who use the service. We told the service two days before our visit that we would be coming to ensure the people we needed to talk to would be available.

At our last inspection in February 2014 we found breaches in the regulations relating to the management of medicines and requirements relating to workers. At this inspection we found that improvements had been made to meet the requirements for both of these regulations.

Skills Base at Cornerways, formerly known as Domiciliary Support Office, provides personal care and support to people with learning disabilities or physical disabilities who live in their own homes. At the time of our inspection they were providing personal care and support to 26 people.

The service is required by law to have a registered manager, and 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.

Everyone we met and spoke with was content and happy with the service they received. People were provided with support and care by a consistent team of staff who knew them and understood their care and support needs well. People were kept informed of any changes to their timetable or if staff were running late.

Staff received training, which was refreshed at regular intervals, to ensure they had the skills and knowledge they required to be able to provide care safely. There was an on-going programme of staff supervision meetings and appraisals to ensure staff performance was monitored regularly. Staff were provided with support and guidance to carry out their role effectively.

Quality assurance systems were in place to monitor and where necessary improve the quality of service being delivered. The service participated in local initiatives to promote good practice in care delivery.