Kings Mill Court

Kings Mill Court is a complex of 12 self-contained flats in the Newsome area of Huddersfield. The service provides personal care and support for up to 12 people with complex physical needs, behaviours that challenge and/or learning disabilities. People live in tenancies agreed with a landlord. Staff were on site 24 hours a day. At the time of our inspection, the service was providing care for 12 people. The flats had a communal lounge and kitchen on the ground floor and secure gardens which provided a private leisure area.

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 outcomes for people using the service truly reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support in the promotion of choice, control, independence and inclusion. The registered manager constantly looked for ways to improve the service. They had pro-actively engaged people and involved them at every opportunity and used excellent communication techniques and resources to include people and respond to any issues that arose.

Kings Mill Court was exceptional at placing people at the heart of the service. The managers and staff of the service had a strong focus on people having as many opportunities as possible to develop their confidence, gain new skills and become as independent as they could.

There was a very positive culture in the service. Staff attributed this to the strong guidance in the service and believed the high levels of positivity in the service stemmed from outstanding leadership. People experienced excellent levels of staff support and interaction to lead fulfilling lives.

People’s voices were of paramount importance in the service. Staff shared the same hopes and aspirations for people to continue to live the lifestyle of their choice. People we spoke with during our inspection highly praised the service and the impact it was having on them. People were supported by staff who were determined to ensure people could make their own choices. Staff assisted people to make their wishes a reality.

Through exceptional care planning people had become significantly more independent and less socially isolated. People had been introduced to new activities, which had led to the development of hobbies, friendships and self-confidence.

There was a strong focus on treating people with equality. Bespoke techniques were used to involve and empower those with communication difficulties to ensure their voices were heard and valued. People told us they were highly valued, shown great respect and their dignity preserved.

People told us they were happy and safe, and staff knew who to contact if they suspected any abuse had taken place. Individualised risk assessments promoted positive supported risk taking. A robust system of learning from incidents kept people safe.

Staff felt very supported with an induction and role specific training, which ensured they had the knowledge and skills to support people.

Meals were planned along with each person around their tastes and preferences and healthy lifestyles were promoted. People were supported to maintain good health and had access to healthcare professionals and services.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their life and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Mental capacity assessments and best interest decisions had been completed where capacity was in doubt.

The registered provider had excellent systems of governance in place to drive improvements to the quality and safety of the service and to promote and share excellent practice.

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

Rating at the last inspection

At the last inspection the service was rated good (last report published 07/01/2017 )

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor the service and re-inspect in line with the current rating. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.

Kings Mill Court is a complex of 12 self-contained flats in the Newsome area of Huddersfield. The service provides personal care and support for up to 12 people with complex physical needs, behaviours that challenge and/or learning disabilities. People live in tenancies agreed with a landlord. The flats have a communal lounge and kitchen on the ground floor and secure gardens which provide a private leisure area. The service was fully occupied on the day we inspected.

Although there was a registered manager assigned to the service we found they had left and a new manager was in post who was in the process of applying to be registered with the Care Quality Commission. 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.

The service was much improved from the previous inspection as people appeared to be more settled and calm. We found staff to have a good understanding of what constituted a safeguarding concern and how to report these, along with learning from such incidents where things could be improved. The service had supported people effectively through such situations, offering additional support where necessary.

Risk assessments were focused in individual need and promoted the benefits of risk taking as much as the likelihood of harm, to ensure decisions were balanced and proportionate. Measures were in place where required to reduce risks so people could undertake different activities.

Staffing levels were much improved and we observed much positive interaction during the day. All staff had a clear understanding of who they were supporting and when, which showed the service had developed a robust allocation system of staffing hours against people’s required support needs. The service felt defined which helped support people by giving guidelines and structure.

Medication was administered in line with current guidelines and storage and checks were all correct.

We found evidence of regular supervision and training offered to all staff and this knowledge was embedded in observed interactions between them and people using the service. This was supported by an accurate use of the Mental Capacity Act 2005, again promoting people taking as many decisions for themselves as possible.

People were supported with nutrition and accessing external organisations as required. We saw evidence of regular and in-depth reviews of care needs with people and their appointed representatives. Care records reflected individual need and guided staff to provide effective support.

Although the registered manager had left, the new manager showed they had a firm grasp of the service, how it ran and where changes had been needed. They had continued and implemented improvements such as with medication administration and the service structure to ensure people’s needs were met as they should be.

On the day of our inspection there were 11 clients living at King's Mill Court. During our visit we spoke with the registered manager, the area manager, two clients living at King's Mill Court and two support workers. We found Kings Mill Court was a new facility, which had opened in March 2013.

Throughout our observations we saw that clients appeared relaxed in their surroundings and were engaged in different activities. We observed interactions between clients and staff that were positive, people frequently laughed or smiled. Staff gently reassured and supported people if they became unsettled or anxious.

We saw client's individual needs were assessed thoroughly and care and support was developed from an assessment of their needs. People appeared well-dressed and well cared-for.

There were sufficient numbers of staff with the right knowledge, experience, skills and qualifications to support people at all times. Staff had received appropriate training for their role and understood the importance of reporting suspected abuse.

The two support workers we spoke with told us they felt well-supported. One of them said St Anne's Community Services was a good company to work for and they felt confident the service provided at King's Mill Court was good. We saw evidence that staff received appropriate training for their role.

The two clients we spoke with told us they felt safe living at King's Mill Court. One of them told us they had only being living there for nine weeks. They said 'I'm slowly getting the hang of being more independent.'

The other client we spoke with told us they went to the local club every week with other people living at the home. They told us staff supported them to do this. They said 'We leave here about 7pm and go on the bus. Staff help me with my wheelchair.'