Creative Support - Stockport Supported Living Service

Updated 27 February 2019

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 7 and 8 February 2019 and was carried out by an adult social care inspector. In line with our inspection methodology we gave short notice of the inspection visit. We gave the provider two days’ notice of our inspection. This was because the service supports people in the community and we needed to be sure that the registered manager would be available to assist us with our inspection.

To help us plan our inspection we reviewed information we held about the service. This included the statutory notifications the CQC had received from the provider. Notifications provide information on changes, events or incidents that the provider is legally obliged to send to us without delay

Prior to the inspection we contacted the local authority to ask if they had any feedback about the service. They told us about an occasion when the service had not responded to a safeguarding concern within the required time frame. We have discussed this further in the ‘safe’ section of this report.

During our inspection we spoke with the registered manager, service manager, three team leaders and three support workers. We visited four supported living tenancies and observed how staff interacted and spoke with people. We talked to two people who used the service. We also spoke with five relatives on the telephone to ask them their opinion of the service.

As part of the inspection we looked at nine sets of care records. These included support plans, risk assessments and medicines records. We reviewed other information about the service, including training and supervision records, health and safety checks and three staff recruitment files.

Updated 27 February 2019

Creative Support – Stockport Supported Living Service provides support to people in and around Stockport. It is part of the national organisation ‘Creative Support’; a not-for-profit organisation which provides services for people with complex needs, including those affected by drug and alcohol misuse, autism, mental health needs and those with a learning disability.

Creative Support – Stockport Supported Living Service provides care and support to people living in 'supported living' settings, so that they can live in their own homes 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. At the time of the inspection the service was supporting 65 people in 16 supported living settings.

The service has been developed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. By following these principles, services can support people with learning disabilities and autism to live as ordinary a life as any other citizen.

This was the first CQC inspection of this service. 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 have made one recommendation about staff supervision.

Systems were in place to help safeguard people from abuse. Staff knew how to identify signs of abuse and what action to take to protect people they supported. Risk assessments had been completed to show how people should be supported with everyday risks. Recruitment checks had been carried out to ensure staff were suitable to work with vulnerable people.

A safe system of medicine management was in place. Staff received medicines training and competency assessments were carried out before they were permitted to administer medicines.

People were looked after by small teams of staff who were committed to providing support in a person-centred and caring way. We saw kind and caring interactions between staff and people they supported during our inspection. People were helped to be as independent as possible.

All new staff received a thorough induction. Staff completed training to ensure they had the knowledge and skills to support people safely.

The service was working within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005. People were helped to make choices and take decisions where able, such as what activities they would like to do.

Staff worked closely with health and social care professionals to ensure people were supported to maintain good health and remain as independent as possible. People's support plans were person-centred. They contained detailed information about their preferred routines, likes and dislikes and how they wished to be supported.

The management team provided good leadership of the service. There was a process for handling complaints and concerns. Audits and quality checks were undertaken on a regular basis and any issues or concerns addressed with appropriate actions.