The Care Quality Commission
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Archived: Care Organiser

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

98 Beluah Road, Thornton Heath, Surrey, CR7 8JF

Provided and run by:
Care Expertise Group Limited

Important: This service is now registered at a different address - see new profile

All Inspections

26 October 2015

During an inspection looking at part of the service

We carried out a comprehensive inspection of this service on 23 and 24 June 2015. A breach of a legal requirement was found. This was because although peoples medicine was stored safely, and people received their medicines as prescribed, sometimes it was not clear from records what ‘as required’ medicine people should have and out of date medicines were not always disposed of in a timely manner.

After the comprehensive inspection, the provider wrote to us to say what they would do to meet legal requirements in relation to the breach.

During our last comprehensive inspection we saw that some strong cleaning chemicals were stored in people’s flats. We were concerned that some of the people who used the service may not be safe as these strong cleaning chemicals were easily accessible to them and there were periods during the day when people were left unsupervised in their own homes.

We undertook a focused inspection on the 26 October 2015 to check that the procedures for recording, storing and disposal of peoples medicine’s had been reviewed by staff and to confirm that they had followed their plan to meet legal requirements. We also reviewed the systems in place to risk assess the cleaning chemicals in people’s homes within the supported living service.

This report only covers our findings in relation to this topic. You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the 'all reports' link for ‘Care Organiser’ on our website at www.cqc.org.uk

Care Organiser provides personal care for people who live in supported living accommodation. The people who use the service have a range of needs including learning disabilities some requiring 24 hour support. During our inspection in June 2015, 42 people were using the service accommodated by nine separate supported living units.

The service had a registered manager in post. 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.

During our focused inspections on the 26 October 2015, we found that the provider had followed their plan and legal requirements had been met.

There were improvements to how changes in people’s medicine were recorded audited and the way people’s medicine was disposed of when no longer required. The provider was planning to put a formal competency assessment in place to regularly monitor staff knowledge in medicine administration to ensure people received their medicine safely.

Locks had been placed on storage cupboards in people’s rooms to keep them safe from potentially dangerous cleaning chemicals. The manager had started to risk assess which product would be safe for some people to use independently and had started to put procedures in place for staff to follow. Formal risk assessments regarding people’s use of cleaning chemicals in their own homes had not been carried out. We will look at how the service keeps people safe in their own homes during our next comprehensive inspection.

23 & 24 June 2015

During a routine inspection

This inspection took place on 23 and 24 June 2015 and was announced. We told the provider two days before our visit that we would be coming. Care Organiser provides personal care for people who live in supported living accommodation. The people who use the service have a range of needs including learning disabilities some requiring 24 hour support. At the time of our inspection 42 people were using the service accommodated by nine separate supported living units. At our last inspection in November 2013 the service was meeting the regulations inspected.

The service had a registered manager in post. 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.

People and their relatives told us they felt safe with the staff at Care Organiser. Staff knew the correct procedures to follow if they thought someone was at risk of harm or abuse. They received appropriate safeguarding training and there were policies and procedures to support them in their role.

Care records focused around each individual and made sure staff had the information they needed to support people. Records included guidance for staff to safely support people by reducing risks to their health and welfare. Staff helped make sure people were in the community by looking at the risks they may face and by taking steps to reduce those risks. However, we were concerned that not all risks had been identified in people’s homes and we spoke to the manager who took action to reduce any immediate risk to people.

People were cared for by staff who received appropriate training and support to do their job well. Staff felt supported by managers. There were enough staff to support people to live a full, active and independent life as possible at the service and in the community. We observed staff had a good understanding of people’s needs and were able to use various forms of interaction to communicate with them. Staff supported people in a way which was kind, caring, and respectful.

Staff helped people to keep healthy and well, they supported people to attend appointments with GP’s and other healthcare professionals when they needed to. Medicines were stored safely, and people received their medicines as prescribed. However, sometimes it was not clear what ‘as required’ medicine people should have and out of date medicines were not always disposed of in a timely manner. We spoke with the manager about our concerns.

People were involved in their food and drink choices and meals were prepared taking account of people’s health, cultural and religious needs.

Staff encouraged people to follow their own activities and interests. Relatives told us they felt comfortable raising any concerns they had with staff and knew how to make a complaint if needed.

The provider regularly sought people’s and staff’s views about how the care and support they received and gave could be improved.

The provider had a number of audits and quality assurance systems to help them understand the quality of the care and support people received. Accidents and incidents were reported and examined. The manager and staff used information about quality of the service and incidents to improve the service.

We found one breach of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of this report.

19 November 2013

During a routine inspection

In this report the name of a registered manager appears who was not in post and not managing the regulatory activities at this location at the time of the inspection. Their name appears because they were still a Registered Manager on our register at the time. However, we were aware of a registered manager application that had been made to the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and during our visit we spoke with the senior compliance officer who had applied to the CQC to manage the regulatory activities at this location.

Care Organiser provides personal care to people who live in supported living accommodation. During our inspection we visited the head office to view some records and we went to a supported living service to meet the people who lived there, talk with staff and look at some of the records kept on site. We spoke with the senior compliance officer, the manager for supported living and two staff members.

We also spoke with two people who used the service, they told us 'I am happy here' and 'I can go out when I want.' We spoke with the relatives of one person using the service who told us 'my relative is really happy and that's what's important' and 'they are more like a family, the staff are always warm and welcoming.'

Staff told us 'I like working with the clients, helping them, for now I wouldn't change a thing' and 'the best part of my job is helping people'.

During our inspection we saw staff always treated people with respect and dignity and people were supported to make informed decisions about how they lived their lives.

We saw that policies and procedures had been put in place to ensure the safety and wellbeing of people using the service and we saw evidence of a quality assurance system regularly monitored by the provider.

16 January 2013

During a routine inspection

At the time of our inspection, the service was not directly providing personal care to people. The service was providing and monitoring the staff employed to work at the supported living homes registered by the provider Care Expertise Limited. All the homes supported by Care Organiser were independently inspected by the Care Quality Commission.

We spoke with the staff responsible for ensuring systems and procedures to assess and monitor the quality of service being provided to Care Expertise Limited, were in place.

We looked at the information provided to people who used the services. We were told people were offered a 'client handbook' when they first started living at the service. We saw that the handbook gives detailed information about the service provided and what people could expect in terms of their care and support.

We looked at the type of audits and surveys the service had undertaken and how changes had been made as a result of the suggestions made by staff and people who used the service.

The registered manager told us staff employed by the service had access to suitable training and development opportunities and we saw evidence of detailed staff induction plans.