Archived: Lady Forester Centre

Lady Forester Centre is a domiciliary care service based in Broseley, near Telford. At the time of the inspection it was providing regulated activity to two people aged 65 and over.

People’s experience of using this service:

People and relatives told us people were safe when being supported by the staff from Lady Forester Centre. We saw systems and processes continued to be implemented to keep people safe. Staff were able to identify inappropriate practice and were aware of procedures to report any harm or abuse. Risk was suitably managed and addressed to promote people’s safety and independence. Although systems were implemented, we noted good practice guidance for the safe management of medicines were not always followed. We have made a recommendation about this.

We were told staff were reliable and always completed their rota’d hours. Staff said they were happy with the way their visits were planned and said they were not rushed to complete tasks.

People’s received timely support to ensure their health care needs were met. We received positive feedback from relatives and health professionals. They said people’s health needs were met by staff working for Lady Forester Centre. The registered manager was aware of referring to good practice when planning and delivering care.

People, relatives and health professionals told us staff were kind and caring. They said staff supported families as well as the people receiving the service. The service understood the importance of protecting people’s human rights; dignity, independence and privacy was always considered and promoted.

Consent was consistently achieved. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

Everyone we spoke with told us the service was well-led. The management team and staff had clear roles and responsibilities and were committed to ensuring the service provided was good. Staff told us they were adequately supported by the management team and were happy with the training provided.

Managers and staff had a clear vision of what was required of a quality service and ensured this was maintained. Feedback was continuously gained from all parties to develop and improve the service.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection:

At the last inspection the service was rated good (published 03 September 2016).

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating. At this inspection visit we found the service remained good.

Follow up:

The next scheduled inspection will be in keeping with the overall rating. We will continue to monitor information we receive from and about the service. We may inspect sooner if we receive concerning information about the service.

Lady Forester Home Care provides personal care for people in their own homes. At this inspection they were providing care and support for 11 people.

A registered manager was in post and present during our inspection. 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 were safe as staff had been trained and understood how to support people in a way that protected them from danger, harm and abuse. Staff had access to care plans and risk assessments and were aware of how to protect people from harm.

The provider completed appropriate checks on staff before they started work to ensure they were safe to work with people. People received help with their medicines from staff who were trained to safely administer these and who made sure they had their medicine when they needed it. Staff followed safe practice when assisting people with their medicines.

People received care from staff that had the skills and knowledge to meet their needs. People’s likes and dislikes were known by staff who supported them in a way which was personal to them. People had positive relationships with the staff members who supported them.

Staff attended training that was relevant to the people they supported. Staff received support and guidance from a management team who they found approachable.

People were involved in decisions about their care and had information they needed in a way they understood. When people could not make decisions for themselves staff understood the steps they needed to follow to ensure people’s rights were upheld.

People had their privacy and dignity respected and information personal to them was treated with confidence. People had access to healthcare when needed and staff responded to any changes in need promptly and consistently. People were supported to maintain a diet which promoted well-being.

People and staff felt able to express their views and felt their opinions mattered. The provider and registered manager undertook regular quality checks in order to drive improvements. The provider engaged people and their families and encouraged feedback. People felt confident they were listened to and their views were valued.

People we spoke with told us that they all had been provided with sufficient information about the services to make a decision as to whether they wanted to use them or not. They also told us that they had been assessed before a service was provided and that they had a care plan that set out the care and support they received.

People who used the service understood the care and treatment choices available to them, and were involved in decisions about their care. Comments included, 'All the staff are very good. I have no complaints'. 'They are wonderful'. 'They sometimes seem short of staff at a weekend'. 'The staff are polite and helpful; they always ask if there's anything else they can do'.

There were comprehensive care planning arrangements in place in the service, which included up to date care plans and risk assessments.

Suitable recruitment checks were completed to ensure people were cared for and supported by qualified, skilled and experienced staff.

There was a complaints policy and procedure in place. People we spoke with told us they knew who to raise any concerns with and they felt confident their concerns would be addressed.

People told us that they felt able to raise any issues with the manager or staff should they have any concerns. Staff talked of their awareness of how to keep people safe from harm. Staff told us about the training that the service had arranged for them so that they would recognise abuse and how to report it.

People told us that staff were punctual and reliable. People's relatives told us that staff were always friendly and professional when they visited. One person said, "*** is really happy with them' and another said 'The staff are very helpful'.

People we spoke with said their comments were listened to. A relative said that they would not hesitate to talk to staff if something was wrong.