- Homecare service
Shared Lives
Assessment report published 19 October 2026
Contents
Ratings
Our view of the service
Date of assessment: 19 May to 28 May 2026. Shared Lives Nottingham provides long-term, short-break and day support placements for adults with a range of support needs, including personal care. The service recruits, assesses, trains and supports Shared Lives carers who provide care and support within their own homes around Nottingham. 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 care and/or support with eating and drinking. Where they do, we also consider any wider social care provided. At the time of this inspection there were nine people receiving personal care. We assessed the service against ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ guidance to make judgements about whether the provider guaranteed autistic people and people with a learning disability respect, equality, dignity, choices, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted.
This is the first inspection for this service since registration. During this assessment we reviewed evidence from people using the service, relatives, care staff, office staff, records, policies and governance systems. We found people were supported by compassionate care staff who promoted independence, choice and inclusion. The service demonstrated a commitment to person-centred care and continuous improvement.
Staff directly employed by shared lives Nottingham are social workers and community care officers, who are office-based and responsible for assessment, matching, transition planning, and ongoing oversight of placements. Direct care is also provided by Shared Lives carers, who are not directly employed by the service but are members of the public approved by the provider to support individuals within their own homes and who operate on a self-employed basis.
People were treated with kindness and respect by staff and protected from harm. People’s care needs were assessed before they used the service. Support plans were basic in detail, however, person centred and contained information supporting staff to provide safe care. Shared lives care staff understood what actions to take where people’s needs changed. People received their medicines as prescribed, with regular checks in place to ensure correct administration, and documentation.
The registered manager and staff worked in partnership with health professionals to help people achieve positive outcomes. The registered manager valued their staff team and worked to support their wellbeing. Staff told us the registered manager was supportive, and they received regular supervisions and felt able to speak up. All of the staff employed by Shared Lives Nottingham gave positive feedback on their experience of working there.
People's experience of this service
“People using the service provided positive feedback about the service, expressing they felt safe and well supported. People told us staff were kind and caring. One person said, “The staff are very helpful and will support us with anything we need.” They were aware of how to raise concerns and knew who to speak to if they wished to discuss any issues.