This inspection visit took place on 26 April 2016 and was announced. The provider was given two days’ notice of our inspection visit to ensure the manager and care staff were available when we visited the office. The service was last inspected on 10 July 2013 when we found the provider was compliant with the essential standards described in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2010.
People at The Willows employed care staff through the provider Turning Point to support them with personal care within a supported living service. There were six people receiving personal care in their own home at The Willows on the day of our inspection visit. Each person had their own bedroom and shared communal facilities with each other, such as bathrooms, kitchen spaces, dining rooms and lounges.
The service had a registered manager. 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. We refer to the registered manager as the manager in the body of this report.
People felt safe using the service and there were processes to minimise risks to people’s safety. These included procedures to manage identified risks with people’s care. Care staff understood how to protect people from abuse and keep people safe. The character and suitability of care staff was checked during recruitment procedures to make sure, as far as possible, they were safe to work with people.
There were enough care staff to deliver the care and support people required. Care staff were kind and knew how people liked to receive their care.
Care staff received an induction when they started working for the service and completed regular training to support them in meeting people’s needs effectively. Training was planned and delivered to take into account the complex needs of people who used the service. Support plans and risk assessments contained relevant information for staff to help them provide the care people needed in a way they preferred.
Staff were supported by managers through regular meetings. There was an out of hours’ on call system in operation which ensured management support and advice was always available for staff. The managers understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA), and care staff respected people’s decisions and gained people’s consent before they provided personal care.
Staff, people and their relatives felt the manager was approachable. Communication was encouraged and identified concerns were acted upon by the manager and provider. People knew how to complain and information about making a complaint was available for people. Care staff said they could raise any concerns or issues with the managers, knowing they would be listened to and acted on. The provider monitored complaints to identify any trends and patterns and had systems in place to make changes to the service in response to complaints.
There were systems to monitor and review the quality of service people received and to understand the experiences of people who used the service. This was through regular communication with people and staff, returned surveys, spot checks on care staff and a programme of other checks and audits. Where issues had been identified, the provider acted to make improvements.