Archived: The D O V E Project - Glanvilles Mill

This inspection was announced and took place on 22, 25 and 27 April 2016. We gave 48 hours’ notice of the inspection because The DOVE Project provided a supported living service for people who are often out during the day. We needed to be sure the registered manager and some of the staff and people receiving support from would be available for us to speak with.

There was 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.

The registered manager, management team and staff demonstrated their commitment to providing high quality, well-led and inclusive support to each person receiving a service. They had effective systems in place to assess people’s needs and plan their support, recruit and train dedicated staff and to monitor the quality of the support services they provided.

People told us they liked their staff and that they were nice. One person told us they had a good staff team and they also frequently called in to the office for a “chat” with the administrative and management team. Relatives also said they had a good relationship with the staff. One relative said the staff were “kind and thoughtful”. The service had clear values with regard to how they supported people. These were known by staff and included, promoting people’s independence, protecting their rights, supporting people to develop friendships and to be involved in the local community. All the staff we spoke with said the service was “person-centred”. Staff were safely recruited, well trained and knew the people they support well. People who received a service were involved in the interview process and were asked their views about a prospective member of staff’s suitability.

People received support to live as independently as possible in their own homes. Support plans were developed which detailed people’s abilities, needs and preferences. The service promoted improving people’s independent living skills and their community involvement. Relatives spoke highly of the support provided by the staff. One relative told us the staff had “transformed” their relation’s life since they had been receiving support. People were supported to pursue their interests and take part in a range of activities. Many people attended a personal development and training scheme provided by The DOVE Project. This scheme aimed to support people’s skills to become more independent at home and to be more involved in the community.

Risks to people’s safety and well-being were clearly identified and management plans had been developed to ensure staff knew how to support people safely and in a way that was personal to that person. People’s medicines were managed safely and appropriate arrangements were in place to order, store and administer medicines. People were supported to maintain good health and had access to healthcare services where required. Support plans contained information about people’s health needs.

People had varying ability to make decisions and choices. Staff had a clear understanding of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and how to make sure people who did not have the capacity to make decisions for themselves had their legal rights protected. Where people were not able to make decisions about certain aspects of their care and support, best interest meetings had been held with them and the people who knew them well to decide on the most appropriate support.

There were effective quality assurance systems in place to monitor care and plan ongoing improvements. The service used review meetings, informal conversations as well as surveys to gain people’s views of the quality of the service they received. Staff were also asked to complete a questionnaire to contribute their views about how well the service was managed. The results of these surveys and questionnaires were collated and an action plan developed to address any issues rasied.

Each person received a copy of the complaints policy when they started receiving a service. People told us they would talk to the staff or one of the managers in the office if they were upset about anything. Records showed when a complaint was received the issue and the actions taken to review and resolve the matter were well recorded. Relatives told us they were confident they could raise any concerns if they needed to. One relative told us, “I can’t find fault. If there are any issues, (name of staff member) sorts it out.”

The management team kept up to date with developments in the care profession by attending meetings with other providers, reading journals and receiving updates from the local authority and CQC. The service was a member of a local care consortium which offered advice and support to care providers.

People we spoke with told us they were very happy with the service they received from the agency and they were enjoying their lives. One person told us "My carers make me feel safe; I know I couldn't cope on my own'. A member of staff told us 'we have so many success stories with our clients I feel privileged to work with them and for our company'.

We saw that people had specific and individualistic care plans. These had been updated daily in accordance to people's wishes. Care plans were easy read with pictures and colour coded charts. This demonstrated an awareness of the individual persons understanding and abilities to read and understand their own care plan.

Support staff worked at a level required by the individual and promotion of independence was evident. Staff had all received a thorough core training programme that included safeguarding and attended regular updates.

There were sufficient support workers to meet people's needs and appropriate background checks had been completed on all staff. Audits were in place to continually monitor and assess the quality of care and support provided.

As part of our inspection we spent one day looking at records held at the agencies office. On two separate days, we also visited four people who use the service in their own homes. These visits gave us the opportunity to speak to people using the service and to meet staff and observe the care being provided.

We saw that staff treated people respectfully at all times and people's personal choices, rights and privacy were taken into account during the planning and delivery of care. People being supported looked happy and contented in their homes and our observations indicated that they had built trusting and positive relationships with the staff supporting them.

One of the people we visited said 'The staff are good, they help me to go to my day centre and to do my shopping' and 'I like being independent, the staff are nice, they look after me and help me look after my car'

People were involved in planning their care and care arrangements were regularly reviewed and updated.

All of the staff we spoke to were aware of the systems in place to keep people safe. Staff received training in the safeguarding of vulnerable adults and this was part of the agencies on going training programme.

The provider regularly reviewed the quality of the service and was able to demonstrate that changes had been made as a result of feedback received.