Background to this inspection
Updated
27 February 2016
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check 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.
The inspection took place between 30 October and 13 November 2015 and was unannounced.
The inspection team consisted of one inspector and one expert by experience. An expert-by-experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service. On this occasion the expert-by-experience had previous experience with people that lived in supported living accommodation.
We used a number of different methods to help us understand the experiences of people who used the service. We spoke with 12 people who used the service and four relatives over the telephone to ask them for their views on the service. In addition we spoke with 12 care workers and three service managers. We looked at 10 people’s care records and other records which related to the management of the service such as training records and policies and procedures.
On this occasion, we did not ask the provider to complete 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 improvements they plan to make. However we reviewed all information we held about the provider and contacted the Local Authority to ask for their views on the service.
Updated
27 February 2016
This inspection took place between 30 October and 13 November 2015 and was unannounced
The Supported Living Service provide care and support to adults with learning disabilities living in their own homes in the Bradford district. They provide up to 24 hour a day support and also have an outreach service. They aim to support people achieve their goals in their everyday lives both at home and out in the community whilst maintaining their independence wherever possible.
The service had a registered manager in place. 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 told us they felt safe and had no concerns about the way they were treated or supported. Relatives told us they felt their family members were safe and cared for in a respectful way.
Staff were aware of the signs and indicators of abuse and they knew what to do if they had any concerns. We observed people were comfortable and relaxed around staff. We observed that staff interaction with people was friendly, encouraging and caring.
Staff supported people to attend health appointments. There were protocols in place to respond to any medical emergencies or significant changes in a person’s well-being.
We found people’s medicines were managed in accordance with safe procedures and in line with people’s prescriptions.
We noted a number of checks had been completed before staff began working for the service. Staff told us they were not allowed to work until all appropriate checks had been completed.
Staff spoke positively about the way the service was run. Staff told the atmosphere was positive and said they felt well supported. Staff had a clear knowledge of line management and told us they had confidence the service was well led.
Training was planned for the year ahead. The service had a training matrix which identified when refresher training was approaching and who was overdue. The vast majority of staff had completed all mandatory training.
There were sufficient numbers of staff to provide support flexibly. There were systems in place to ensure staff received training, on-going development, supervision and support.
Care plans were developed in consultation with people and their family members. Some care records were not always completed to a consistent level.
People’s risk assessments were completed and these covered a range of issues including guidance around accessing the community and personal safety. People using the service and their relatives expressed positive views about the service and the staff.
The service was acting within the legal framework of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA).
People’s independence was promoted and staff actively encouraged people to participate in activities.
Systems were in place to record, investigate and respond to complaints.
There were arrangements in place to assess and monitor the quality and effectiveness of the service. This included annual surveys, house meetings and medicines administration auditing.
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 report.