Updated 31 July 2025
Date of Assessment: 19 August to 8 September 2025.
The service is a 'supported living' service that provides support packages for people with a learning disability or autistic spectrum disorder. Each person has their own individual lease agreement with the housing association and a separate contractual agreement for their support. The service has several 'supported living' settings in the Greater Manchester region. Each setting contains a number of individual bedrooms or flats and shared or communal gardens, lounges, kitchens and dining areas. The service provides 24-hour support. The service also provides a care at home service, providing personal care and support to people living in and around Greater Manchester. At the time of this assessment, 17 people were receiving support from the service. Not everyone who used the service received personal care. The Care Quality Commission (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.
We carried out this comprehensive assessment in response to concerns about the quality of care people received and staff training.
We have assessed the service against ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ guidance to make judgements about whether the provider guaranteed people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted.
Right Support: Staff supported people to have the maximum possible choice, control and independence over their own lives. Staff supported people in ways that allowed people to make day to day decisions. Staff focused on people's strengths and promoted what they could do, so people had a fulfilling and meaningful everyday life. 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. Medicines were managed safely. Staff had to undertake training before they could administer medicines and received competency checks to ensure they administered medicines safely. Recruitment systems were in place to ensure staff were suitable to work with vulnerable adults. However, the provider had not obtained a Disclosure and Barring (DBS) check for 1 staff member before they started employment.
Right Care: Person-centred care was promoted. People’s views and decisions about care were incorporated within their care packages. This helped staff to support people in a way that allowed people to have control over their lives and make day-to-day decisions. The registered managers and staff demonstrated a commitment to people, and they displayed person-centred values. People's choices were respected, and staff supported them to achieve good outcomes. Staff were kind, respectful and caring. Staff engaged with people in a friendly and caring manner and their conversations with people were good natured. Staff were attentive to people's needs. Staff protected and respected people's privacy and dignity. People were protected from the risks of abuse and staff were trusted to keep them safe.
Right Culture: The culture between leaders, staff and people was open and inclusive. Staff enjoyed their roles and the relationships between staff and people were positive. People received a good standard of care and support because trained staff could meet their needs and wishes. Staff placed people's wishes, needs and rights at the heart of everything they did. Managers evaluated the quality of support provided to people, involving the person, their families and other professionals as appropriate. The registered manager and staff had a shared culture and passion for ensuring people reached their maximum potential. The registered manager was visible and accessible for staff to seek advice and guidance. Staff praised the registered manager and the wider management team. Staff spoke positively about the support they received. However, the provider was in breach of Regulation 18 (Notification of other incidents) of the Care Quality Commission (Registrations) Regulations 2009, as they did not always send statutory notifications to the CQC when required. Registered providers have a duty to submit statutory notifications to the CQC when certain incidents, such as serious injuries or allegations of abuse happen. The provider had a range of checks and audits to monitor the quality and safety of the service and to help drive improvements. However, auditing systems did not pick up on the issues we found during this inspection.
We have asked the provider for an action plan in response to the concerns found at this assessment.