PBS4

Updated 19 February 2020

The inspection

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

Inspection team

This inspection was carried out by one inspector and one assistant inspector.

Service and service type

This service provided care and support to 23 people living in various ‘supported living’ settings, so that they can live as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. A registered manager and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections.

We reviewed previous inspection reports and notifications the provider had sent us about significant events which occurred at the service. We received feedback from seven professionals who had recent experience of working with the service. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We visited three people at their homes to ask them for feedback about the care they received. One person was able to give us feedback about their care. We spoke to two people in the provider’s office. We received feedback from six relatives via telephone call or email.

We visited the provider’s office on 26 November, 6 and 12 December. We spoke with the registered manager, the enablement director and the operations manager. We spoke to a range of other staff including, managers, practice leads, positive behaviour support (PBS) consultants, care staff and the human resources manager.

We reviewed a range of records. This included five people’s care plans, three staff files in relation to recruitment and supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies, procedures, audits, incident reports, quality assurance questionnaires and risk assessments were reviewed. We also reviewed two quality monitoring reports from local authorities, which were carried out in 2019.

Updated 19 February 2020

About the service:

This service provided care and support to 23 people living in ‘supported living’ settings, so that they can live as independently as possible. People ranged from younger adults to older people living with a learning disability and associated conditions, such as autistic spectrum disorders.

The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.

People’s experience of using this service

The leadership of the service demonstrated an outstanding commitment to engaging with people, stakeholders and the local community, to promote positive outcomes for people. They helped raise awareness and understanding of people’s needs in their local community, supported local provider’s in best practice and contributed on a national level, in helping to promote best practice in learning disability care.

The leadership team played an active role in the day-to-day care and support people received. They had systems in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service and listen to people’s feedback and concerns.

People and relatives were happy with the care they received from the provider. People were treated with dignity, respect and as individuals. Their care focussed on helping them to live full and active lives in the community, whilst building skills and increasing their independence.

The provider had established positive working relationships with stakeholders to meet people’s complex needs. People’s needs were assessed and reviewed in line with best practice. Their care plans reflected their preferences, routines and ways in which staff could help keep them safe.

People were supported with their healthcare and nutritional needs. The provider worked with people to overcome historical anxieties around accessing healthcare services. This resulted in positive outcomes for people’s health.

Staff had received training in line with people’s needs and were appropriately supervised in their role. Staff understood people’s needs and were motivated to provide good quality care. There were enough staff in place, who had been subject to appropriate recruitment checks to ensure they were suitable to work with people.

People and relatives told us they were fully involved in decisions about their care and that any complaints or feedback would be listened to by the provider.

The provider met people's communication needs and helped them contribute towards making decisions about their care. 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.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

The service was rated good at our last inspection (report published 4 May 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.