Creative Support - St. Helens

Updated 9 October 2018

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked 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.

This was a comprehensive inspection carried out by an adult social care inspector. The inspection took place on 25 August 2018 and was announced. The registered provider was given 48 hours notice as we needed to be sure that someone would be available during our visit.

Prior to the inspection the registered provider had 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 any improvements they plan to make. We used this information to form part of our inspection planning document and throughout the inspection process.

We checked the information that we held about the service and the registered provider. This included statutory notifications sent to us by the registered manager about incidents and events that had occurred at the service. A notification is information about important events which the registered provider is required to send us by law.

Prior to the inspection we contacted the local authority quality monitoring team and local safeguarding teams who raised no concerns about the service.

We reviewed three care plan files including risk assessments, for staff recruitment and training files as well as records relating to the management of the service.

During the inspection we observed interactions between people and staff. People were able to give us brief comments in relation to the support they received. We also used their responses to the staff team to make a judgement on the quality of the support they received. We spoke with three support staff support staff, one senior support worker and the area manager.

Updated 9 October 2018

This inspection was undertaken on 25 August 2018 and was announced. At our last inspection we rated the service good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of good and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

Creative Support (St Helens) is a supported living accommodation scheme which provides personal care to 10 vulnerable adults living within self-contained flats. The service is based within a residential area of Clock Face, St Helens.

This service provides care and support people living in a 'supported living' setting, so that they can live in their own home 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 people's personal care and support.

The service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and of the best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.

The service has a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who is registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers they are 'registered persons'. Registered persons have a legal responsibility for meeting the requirements of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations about how the service is run.

Staff recruitment continue to be robust and this helped to ensure that only staff suitable to work with vulnerable people were employed. All staff had completed a comprehensive induction and had completed shadow shifts with experienced staff members before they loan worked. Staff at all completed mandatory training as well as additional training required for their role. Staff attended team meetings and had regular supervision. This meant that staff at the right knowledge and skills to support people.

Safeguarding policies and procedures were in place and staff had all received training. Staff demonstrated a good understanding of abuse and described clearly the processes to be followed in the event of a person being at risk of harm.

Medicines were ordered, stored, administered and disposed of in accordance with best practice guidelines. All staff had completed medicines training and had their competency regularly assessed. The registered provider had medicines policies and procedures in place. Staff consistently completed medicine administration records (MARs).

People were assessed prior to receiving support from the service. Information gained through assessment was used to create person centred risk assessments and care plans. These documents included clear guidance for staff about how a person was to be supported and how risk was to be mitigated. People and their relatives participated in regular reviews which ensured information remained up-to-date.

Staff had a good knowledge of people they supported and had developed positive relationships with them. People were offered choice and their independence was promoted. People were treated with kindness and patience by the staff team. We saw that people's privacy and dignity was respected by staff.

People were supported to participate in activities of their choice. People's food and drink needs were assessed and clear guidance was in place for staff to follow for these to be met. Records showed that people were offered choice and their specific dietary needs were met.

A complaint policy and procedure was readily available for people and their relatives. This was also available and easy read and pictorial formats. Relatives told us they felt confident about raising any concerns or complaints and thought they would be listened to.

The Care Quality Commission as required by law to monitor the operation of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and to report on what we find. We saw that the registered provider had policies and guidance in place for staff in relation to the MCA. Staff had received training in relation to the MCA and demonstrated a basic understanding of it.

The registered provider had effective quality monitoring systems in place that were consistently completed by the management team. Audit systems were regularly undertaken as part of the registered providers governance process. This meant areas for development and improvement were identified promptly and actions were completed within appropriate timescales.

The registered provider had policies and procedures in place to support the running of the service and offer guidance to staff. These were available and easy read and pictorial formats.