We carried out a review of the data available to us about Care Opportunities Supported Living 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 Care Opportunities Supported Living, you can give feedback on this service.
Care Opportunities Supported Living provides care and support for individuals with learning and physical disabilities living in their own homes. At the time of the inspection the service was supporting 21 people.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
The provider was outstanding and creative with their support to encourage people to build confidence and independence so they had an enhanced sense of wellbeing and quality of life.
The provider had systems and processes in place to manage medicines safely and protect people from the risk of abuse. Infection control measures were in place to minimise the risk of infection. The provider acted upon or learnt from incidents, such as managing and reporting medicines errors.
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.
Care workers had developed caring relationships with people they supported. Staff respected people's dignity and privacy and promoted and supported their independence.
People's care and support met their needs and reflected their preferences.
Management processes were in place to monitor and improve the quality of the service. There was a positive and open culture. The management team sought feedback from people, relatives and staff. Feedback was positive across all areas.
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 Outstanding (published 1 March 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.
Care Opportunities Supported Living provides care and support for individuals with learning and physical disabilities living in their own homes. At the time of the inspection the service was supporting 12 people.
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.
Staff and the management team had an excellent understanding of managing risks and were supporting people to reach their full potential. Staff and the management also helped people to overcome difficulties resulting from people’s past experience and anxieties. People felt safe in the service and staff had a very clear understanding of their responsibilities in relation to abuse. The provider's whistleblowing policy protected staff to make disclosures about poor staff conduct or practice, and staff confirmed the manager would take responsive action if they reported such problems.
People had their medicines managed safely, and received their medicines in a way they chose and as prescribed.
The provider had effective recruitment and selection procedures in place and carried out relevant checks when they employed staff to help ensure staff were suitable to work with vulnerable people.
People’s rights were recognised, respected and promoted. Staff had a good understanding of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and we saw people’s consent was sought routinely. Staff were knowledgeable about the rights of people to make their own choices. This was reflected in the way the care plans were written and the way in which staff supported and encouraged people to make decisions when delivering care and support.
The provider and the registered manager were highly committed to encouraging staff to participate in training to develop their skills. Staff were provided with a range of training opportunities. The registered manager used creative, proactive and innovative ways of enhancing the skills of staff. This enabled staff to apply their learning in their practice. Knowledge tests were created with respect to people’s support needs and used to consistently check the staff members’ knowledge. This helped to ensure staff delivered, personalised, quality care.
Staff told us they felt supported by the management and received supervision and appraisals, which helped to identify their training and development needs.
People's health and well-being needs were monitored. The registered manager and staff responded promptly to any concerns in relation to people's health and were knowledgeable about people's medical history. Staff always accompanied people to hospital appointments and visited them in hospital. People were supported to maintain a healthy, active lifestyle. Clear, easy-to-read plans were designed to help people manage health conditions that needed monitoring. Health and social care professionals were involved in people's support when needed and their advice was included in the care provided. Staff worked together with community professionals to prepare people for health care checks.
The interactions we observed between people and staff were positive. We heard and saw people laughing and smiling. People looked comfortable, relaxed and happy in their home and in the company of other people they lived with.
The difference the service was making to people's lives was apparent. Some of the people had previously displayed anxious behaviour or had been emotionally disturbed which had led to restrictive lifestyles. However, the service now supported them in a more positive way. People needed consistent support to make them feel secure and understood, to manage their behaviours and to make their needs known. During the inspection we observed people receiving this. The warmth of the relationships with each other and with staff, and the opportunities for new experiences enabled people to make positive progress.
The service provided excellent care and support to people enabling them to live fulfilled and meaningful lives. Activities and people's daily routines were personalised and tailored to people's particular choices and interests. People were supported to develop their skills and pursue their hobbies and interests. People benefited from consistent support, good teamwork of staff, good planning and delivery of person-centred care. For example, the service had managed to reduce one person’s anxiety levels and built up their confidence so that the person was able to travel to another country by plane. It was something this person had not been able to consider and cope with before. The person spoke excitedly about their forthcoming holiday and staff talked enthusiastically about the planning, preparations and the reasons why the person had chosen their destination.
People were able to express their opinions and were encouraged and supported to have their voice heard. People were fully involved in planning and reviewing their care and support needs.
There was a complaints procedure in place and people felt confident to raise any concerns either with the staff or the registered manager if they needed to. The complaints procedure was available in different formats so that it was accessible to everyone.
There was a positive culture within the service, the management team provided strong leadership and led by example. The registered manager promoted values of high quality, person-centred care and had clear visions of how they wished the service to be provided. The manager’s enthusiasm helped to make the whole staff share these values. Individualised care was central to the home's philosophy and staff demonstrated they understood and practiced this by talking to us about how they met people's care and support needs.
The provider had a robust quality assurance system in place and gathered information about the quality of the service from a variety of sources including people who used the service and other agencies. Learning from incidents and feedback were used to help drive continuous improvement.
People told us that they made choices about their daily activities and their menu choices. One person said they chose what they would like to eat, went shopping and then cooked it with some help from staff. Staff we spoke with told us how much they enjoyed working with the people living in the houses.
There were processes in place to ensure the safe ordering, storage, handling and administration of medication.
The recruitment process ensured that people were cared for by suitably qualified, skilled and experienced staff.
There was a complaints procedure which was available to people in a format that met their needs. One person we spoke with told us what they would do if they weren't happy. People were offered daily opportunities to talk with staff about any concerns. There were also monthly meetings so people could discuss concerns with other tenants and staff.
We saw a recent annual review and the relative of one of the people had expressed that they were very happy with the care and support their relative had received. They had said 'she seems very settled and happier than she has ever been before'.
People were involved in writing their support plan and all decisions that were made about the home they lived in. There were regularly reviewed risk assessments in place which ensured that care and support was consistent and ensured the safety and welfare of the people using the service.
The provider regularly assessed the service they provided and kept a clear audit record.