Supported Living Service

Updated 24 June 2023

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by 2 inspectors. One inspector visited the providers office and people in their homes. A second inspector made phone calls to relatives to gather feedback.

Service and service type

This service provides care and support to people living in 8 ‘supported living’ settings, so that they can live as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 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 15 May 2023 and ended on 30 May 2023. We visited the location’s office on 15 May 2023.

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. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We visited and spoke with 4 people who use the service. We also spoke with 4 relatives about their experience of care and support provided. We observed people and their interaction with staff and each other throughout the inspection visit. We also spoke with 6 members of staff including the registered manager and support workers. We received email feedback from a further 6 members of staff.

We viewed a range of records. This included 4 people’s care records, associated risk assessments and medicine administration records (MAR). We looked at 4 recruitment files. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including health and safety records, risk assessments, staff rotas and quality assurance audits were examined.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at key policies and procedures, staff training and governance information.

Updated 24 June 2023

About the service

Supported Living Service is a supported living service, providing personal care to people living across 8 shared houses. The service provides support to people living with a range of care needs, including physical disabilities, learning disabilities and autism. At the time of our inspection there were 34 people using the service.

Not everyone who used the service received 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 our inspection the provider was supporting 18 people with personal care.

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

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. 'Right support, right care, right culture' is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

Right Support:

Staff supported people to have an active role in planning for and maintaining the health and wellbeing. 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 were encouraged to regularly discuss and plan their care and support, enabling them to maximise their potential and challenge themselves to achieve and lead a rewarding and fulfilling life.

Right Care:

People received exceptionally kind and compassionate care. Staff knew people very well, understood and responded to their individual needs. Staff promoted and respected people’s right to privacy, dignity, and respect. Staff knew how to protect people from the risk of harm and abuse. Staff were fully committed in promoting people's human rights, which included making available and sign posting people to sources of additional help and advice, which included external support groups and advocacy services.

Right Culture:

Staff were motivated and proud of the service. They spoke highly of the management team and were supported to develop. Relatives were highly complementary of the staff and management, and their commitment to go above and beyond to deliver inclusive and empowering care. Governance of the service was well-embedded, with a strong commitment to monitor the performance of the service to bring about continued improvement.

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 05 November 2021 and this is the first inspection.

The last rating for the service at the previous premises was good, published on 04 May 2019.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Supported Living Services on our website at www.cqc.org.uk

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.