We carried out a review of the data available to us about Floating Support City on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Floating Support City, you can give feedback on this service.
Floating Support City is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care and support to people living in their own homes in the Norwich area. Not everyone who used the service received the regulated activity of personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care; this is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where people do we also consider any wider social care provided. Therefore, whilst the service currently supports over 80 people, only 11 of these were receiving personal care. This inspection therefore only focused on the service provided to these 11 people.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
Feedback from people using the service was positive and all the people we spoke with recommended the service.
People were protected from abuse, neglect and discrimination. Staff ensured people's safety and acted when necessary to prevent any harm. We found care plans and risks assessments were mostly thorough. People received their medicines according to prescriber's instructions.
Recruitment practice was thorough and ensured there were enough staff of appropriate character to provide consistent support.
Staff received sufficient training and people said staff were skilled in providing their care. Staff monitored people's health and helped them access health and social care services whenever needed.
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.
People described the staff as kind and reliable. The staff actively encouraged people’s independence and dignity. People were encouraged to actively participate in their care planning and were given opportunities to feedback on the service provided. There was a strong emphasis on personalising the support provided, encouraging social activities and enabling people to access their local community.
Whilst we received positive feedback about end of life care being provided, we have made a recommendation about being better prepared for providing end of life care. Reviews were completed when required due to a change in need or circumstances. However regular reviews to check people’s preferred outcomes were still appropriate and being achieved were not completed. We have made a recommendation regarding completing regular reviews of care plans.
People told us the provider was usually accessible and dealt with any concerns or complaints effectively. Staff reported after a period of re-structure, the service had a clearer focus and was well managed.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
The last rating for this service was ‘Good’ (published 12 January 2017).
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
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.
There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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.
Staff were knowledgeable about reporting any suspicions of harm to people. There were a sufficient number of staff and recruitment procedures ensured that only suitable staff were employed. Risk assessments were in place and actions were taken to reduce identified risks.
There were effective procedures in place to ensure that people were safely assisted with their medicines.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is required by law to monitor the operation of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and report on what we find. Staff we met were able to demonstrate a good understanding of MCA. This meant that any decisions made on people's behalf by staff would be in their best interest and as least restrictive as possible.
Staff were supported and trained to do their job and additional training was provided for specific care needs to be fully met. The team managers and support staff were in contact with a range of health care professionals to ensure that people’s care and support was well coordinated. Risk assessments were in place to help ensure that care and support could be safely provided.
People’s privacy and dignity was respected and their support was provided in a caring and a patient way.
People were supported, where required, to ensure they ate and drank sufficient quantities. People had the choice to eat the food they preferred and healthy eating was promoted by care staff.
Care and support was provided based on people’s individual personal and social care needs. There was a process in place so that people’s concerns and complaints were listened to and these were acted upon.
The provider had quality assurance processes and procedures in place to monitor the quality and safety of people’s care. People were able to make changes to the support and care provided to them by the service.