Assisted Living Care

Updated 20 August 2021

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. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was completed by one inspector.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats and specialist housing.

The service had two managers registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they 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 24 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.

Inspection activity started on 22 July 2021 and ended on 12 August 2021. We visited the office location on 22 July 2021.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. 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 used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We were unable to speak to people who used the service. We spoke to one relative about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with five members of staff including the provider, registered manager and care workers

We reviewed a range of records. This included two people’s care records and medication records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records.

Updated 20 August 2021

About the service

Assistive Living Care is a domiciliary care agency who are registered to offer support to older and younger adults with; learning disabilities, autism, and mental health. They provide personal care to people living in their own homes. Not everyone who can use the service receives personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided. At the time of the inspection three people were receiving personal care.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People were supported by staff who knew them well, had adequate training and were recruited safely.

Care plans and risk assessments were detailed and included the person’s holistic needs. People’s likes/dislikes, routines and history was documented. People and significant others were involved in the care planning process.

Staff were supported by managers who were open and transparent. Staff felt supported and told us they could give feedback or suggestions to the registered manager and their views would be listened to.

People were supported with dignity and respect and were encouraged to be as independent as possible.

Medicines were managed and administered safely. Staff supported people to make and attend health appointments. The staff team worked closely with external professionals to ensure people’s health needs were met.

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.

Systems and processes were in place to ensure oversight of the service and to ensure person centred care was delivered.

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. Right Support, right care, right culture is the statutory guidance which supports CQC to make assessments and judgements about services providing support to people with a learning disability and/or autistic people.

The service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of Right support, right care, right culture.

Right support:

• Staff maximise people’s choice, control and independence. The service was working to the transforming care programme.

Right care:

• Care is person-centred and promotes people’s dignity, privacy and human rights

Right culture:

• Ethos, values, attitudes and behaviours of managers and care staff ensure people using the service can lead confident, inclusive and empowered lives

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

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 30 May 2019 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the registration date.

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.