Potensial North East Supported Living - 6 High Street

At our last inspection in March 2016 we rated the service good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of good. There was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

Potensial North East Supported Living is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living at 6 High Street in one large property. It provides a service to older adults and younger disabled adults. This service provides care and support to people living in 'supported living’ settings, so that they can live as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support.

On the day of our inspection there were five people using the service.

The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. The goal is that people with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.

The service manager was overseeing the operation of the care service and had applied to become the registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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 told us they worked well as an individual team but every staff member we spoke with expressed concerns over the imminent future of leadership at the service. We did see that the outgoing manager had arranged staff meetings to update staff as far as they were able.

Staff had been trained in safeguarding issues and knew how to recognise and report any abuse. We saw the service worked proactively to support people to manage any anxiety or distress and they had worked well with other services to maintain people in their home environment.

We reviewed the systems for the management of medicines and found that people received their medicines safely and there were clear guidelines in place for staff to follow.

Appropriate checks of the building and maintenance systems were undertaken to ensure health and safety requirements were met.

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.

There were enough staff to meet people's needs. Any new staff were appropriately vetted to make sure they were suitable and had the skills to work at the service. The staff were given support by means of regular training, supervision and appraisal.

People's dietary needs were fully understood and people told us staff encouraged them to eat a healthy diet.

People were supported, where appropriate, to manage their health needs. Staff responded promptly to any changes in the person’s health or general demeanour.

People told us they knew how to raise a concern if they were unhappy with anything and we saw people were asked about their views of the service.

People were supported to access a variety of learning, employment and leisure opportunities and were an active part of local community life.

Systems were in place for auditing the quality of the service and for making improvements. We saw the manager was keen to share learning from incidents and to take forward improvements they had identified through their quality assurance process.

Potensial North East Supported Living - 6 High Street provide supported living and community based domiciliary services for 7 people with learning disabilities and mental health needs. The service supports people to live as independently as possible

There was 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 were safely supported to access their medicines. Records were kept of administration, and medicines were securely and safely stored. Daily records were kept of medication counts and we found these to be accurate. However we did find a discrepancy with one and the registered manager said they would investigate this.

Risks associated with people’s care needs were assessed and plans put in place to minimise risk in order to keep people safe. A number of checks were carried out around the service to ensure that the premises and equipment were safe to use.

Staff understood safeguarding issues, and felt confident to raise any concerns they had in order to keep people safe.

There were sufficient staff to meet the needs of people using the service. Support and care was provided at an individual level with personal support plan agreed following thorough assessment with the involvement of the individuals and professionals involved in their support.

Staff received training to ensure that they could appropriately support people. The registered provider followed safe recruitment practices.

Staff received support through regular supervisions and appraisals. Staff felt confident to raise any issues or support needs they had at these.

Staff understood and applied the principles of the Mental Capacity Act and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards to ensure that people’s rights were protected. Care plans contained evidence of mental capacity assessments and best interest decisions.

People were supported to maintain a healthy diet. People who used the service took turns to cook the main meal for everyone using the service.

The service worked with external professionals to support and maintain people’s health. Staff knew how to make referrals to external professionals where additional support was needed. Care plans contained evidence of the involvement of GPs, district nurses and other professionals.

People were treated with kindness, compassion and respect. We saw many positive interactions and people felt relaxed and enjoyed talking to the staff.

Procedures were in place to support people to access advocacy services should the need arise.

Care was planned and delivered in way that responded to people’s assessed needs. Plans contained detailed information on people’s personal preferences, and people and their relatives said care reflected those preferences. Care plans were regularly reviewed to ensure they met people's current needs.

People had access to a wide range of activities, which they enjoyed either independently or during their one to one allocated hours. The registered manager and staff explored options for people who used the service.

The service had a clear complaints policy that was applied when issues arose. People knew how to raise any issues.

The registered manager was actively involved in monitoring standards and promoting good practice. Feedback was sought from people, external professionals and staff to do assist in this.