Archived: Braintree Healthcare Limited

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.

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

People and their relatives spoke highly of the service and the level and quality of support provided. Staff and the management of the service shared a clear vision that people should lead fulfilling and meaningful lives.

There were enough staff to support people and promote their independence. People were supported to access the community in the way they wanted to, which enhanced their wellbeing.

People were supported by staff who knew people well and with whom they had developed warm relationships.

Staff received training and were passionate about achieving the best outcomes for people. They told us that the management team were supportive and helpful.

People received their medicines when they needed them. People had access to a range of health care services to enhance their physical and mental wellbeing.

People and their relatives told us that the management of the service consulted with them and they were given opportunities to feedback about how they were supported.

There were systems in place to audit and review how care was delivered.

The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.

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 good (published 11 February 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.

This service was last inspected on 22 November 2013 and was found to be compliant with the regulations.

The inspection took place on 17 October 2016 and was announced. The service provided support to people living in their own homes, therefore to ensure that they were at home and to arrange a convenient time for us to visit them the service was given 48 hours’ notice of the inspection.

The service had a registered manager in place. 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 who used the service and their relatives spoke of the outstanding care delivery. Relatives told us that the manager and staff went above and beyond what was necessary to ensure that people received a person centred service. People received care from staff who knew and understood them and with whom they felt comfortable. Consequently, meaningful relationships had developed between staff and people using the service, and it was clear that staff enjoyed supporting people and enabling them to achieve their goals. Staff were thoughtful and patient when providing care and supported people to make choices about all aspects of their daily life. Staff were respectful and showed empathy, compassion and kindness when speaking to people. The service supported people to maintain relationships and to access and be an active part of the community.

Risk assessments were in place to protect people from harm. Staff received training on how to recognise signs of abuse and were clear about what action to take if any concerns arose. The service had provided people with information about how to recognise and report concerns about abuse in an easy read format.

The service had a robust recruitment process in place to ensure that staff had the necessary skills and attributes to support people using the service. New members of staff completed an induction programme during which they were given time to familiarise themselves with people’s care plan and were introduced to, and spent time with, the people that they would be supporting.

People received care from highly skilled staff who were supported to access a wide variety of training sessions which ensured that the needs of people using the service were met.

Each person received care that was individualised and centred around their needs and wishes. The care and support provided to people was proactive and was based upon their preferences and passions in life. Support was provided in a flexible way, this meant that it could be adapted to meet people’s changing needs.

People were supported in line with the legislation of the Mental Capacity Act and no unnecessarily restrictive practices were in place. There were effective systems in place to ensure that people’s medication, money and personal information was kept safe. There were also systems in place that recorded, analysed and enabled the service to learn from accidents and incidents.

Staff supported people to understand the importance of a healthy diet and how to maintain a healthy weight. Where concerns were identified about people’s nutritional status specialist advice was sought from healthcare professionals such as the dietician and speech and language therapist.

The service supported people to express their views by having weekly one to one meetings which were recorded in their support plan. People were supported by a regular member of staff who knew them well. This continuity of care helped staff to develop relationships with the people that they supported and enabled staff to respond to changes in people’s needs and to act upon them quickly.

People were supported to participate in activities that they chose and which were fulfilling and purposeful to them. People and their relatives knew how to raise concerns or make a complaint and were confident that prompt and appropriate action would be taken if the need arose.

The manager empowered staff and people to maximise their potential and achieve their goals. They had a clear vision for the service and systems were in place which enabled her to monitor and develop the service. Staff took pride in their work, felt valued by the organisation and endorsed the values of the service.

We found that people's needs had been planned and assessed to meet their needs. We observed and saw through records that the care received by people was safe. We found that the service had appropriate arrangements in place for obtaining consent to care. Where appropriate the service had assessed people's mental capacity in accordance with the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

The provider had good arrangements to promote effective performance of the service. People were asked to provide feedback about the care they received and were supported appropriately. Where improvements could be made the manager had a clear plan in place to ensure the improvements were achieved.

We saw that the registered manager showed clear leadership and that all staff were expected to provide a high quality of care to people. The provider ensured that people's care was regularly reviewed and that additional provisions to support their care were provided where required.

We looked at care records. These were clear and showed the involvement of the person they related to. We also looked at staff training records. These showed that the care staff received a range of training to ensure they had the necessary skills to support and care for the people that received support.

We reviewed the provider's quality assurance process. This ensured that any required improvements were identified and introduced.