Archived: Ewer Court

The service is registered to provide care and support to three people with a range of physical and learning disabilities. At the time of our inspection three people were using the service, each living in their own flat.

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.

Staff were trained in safeguarding people from the risk of abuse and systems were in place which were designed to protect people from all forms of abuse, including financial. Staff understood their responsibilities to report any safeguarding concerns they may have.

Risks had been assessed and actions taken to reduce these risks. Risk assessments were detailed and demonstrated a commitment to ensuring people were as independent as possible.

Staffing levels matched those the service had assessed to be safe and to support and promote independence. Recruitment procedures, designed to ensure that staff were suitable for this type of work, were robust and staff employed had suitable skills and experience to carry out their roles.

Medicines were administered safely and records related to medicines management were accurately completed.

Staff training was comprehensive and there was ongoing development of the skills of the staff team. The manager ensured that they, and their staff, were kept updated with current health and social care practice.

Staff had received training in the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2015 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). The MCA and DoLS ensure that, where people lack capacity to make decisions for themselves, decisions are made in their best interests according to a structured process. Where people’s liberty needs to be restricted for their own safety, this must done in accordance with legal requirements. The service acted in accordance with the MCA and people’s consent was established before care and treatment was provided.

People were supported with their eating and drinking needs and staff helped people to achieve and maintain good health by supporting them with their dietary and day to day healthcare needs.

Staff were very caring and treated people respectfully making sure their dignity was maintained. Staff were positive about the job they did and enjoyed the relationships they had built with the people they were supporting and caring for.

People, and their relatives, were involved in planning and reviewing their care and were encouraged to provide feedback on the service. Care plans had been appropriately reviewed and reflected people’s current needs.

There had been no formal complaints but a complaints procedure and policy was in place and the service responded to informal feedback well. People had been supported to make a complaint about their local environment.

Staff understood their roles and felt well supported by the manager of the service. Supervision was regular and effective and an annual appraisal system was in place. The manager was particularly committed to developing their team and worked innovatively to check and improve staff practice.

Quality assurance systems were good and the manager was proactive in gathering and acting on feedback from relevant people connected with the service, as well as those who lived there.

Record keeping was good and there was clear management oversight of the day to day running of the service. The manager maintained links with local forums to ensure that the service followed current and best practice in order to deliver a high quality service.

During our inspection we saw that staff were knowledgeable about people's needs and promoted their independence. During our discussions with staff we found that they had a good understanding and awareness of people's care needs and preferences. One person who used the service told us: 'I like living here it`s good. The staff treat me as an individual person."

We saw that there were policies and procedures, records and monitoring systems in place for the protection of people who used the service from abuse. Staff told us that they had participated in regular training, which had enabled them to gain the skills and knowledge required to support people who used the service. Staff told us they felt supported by their managers.

We saw that there was a complaints policy and procedure in place and that staff were aware of the complaints procedure. People who used the service told us that they were aware of how and who to complain to. The provider regularly reviewed the complaints received to identify if there were any trends and what lessons could be learnt.

During our inspection we spoke with three people who told us they liked living at Ewer Court. One person told us that they loved living there. We saw that people smiled and appeared relaxed and comfortable with staff and others living in there.