Archived: Crossroads Care - Bolton

Updated 29 December 2015

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

The inspection took place on17 November 2015. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice to ensure there would be a manager present at the office on the day of the inspection.

The inspection was carried out by an adult social care inspector from the Care Quality Commission.

We had received a completed Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to the inspection. This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We also reviewed information we held about the service in the form of notifications and enquiries received.

Crossroads Care provides respite for carers and assistance for cared for people. We spoke with four people who were cared for, five carers and six members of staff, including the registered manager. We also contacted two health and social care professional visitors who had experience of the service. This was to ascertain their views of the care delivery. We looked at records held by the service, including electronic care plans and staff files, audits, training records, meeting minutes and general information supplied by the provider.

Updated 29 December 2015

This inspection took place on 17 November 2015. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice to ensure that there would be a manager in the office when we visited. The last inspection was undertaken in January 2014 when the service was meeting all requirements reviewed.

Crossroads Care – Bolton provides practical and emotional support in the form of a respite service to carers who are supporting adults and children with care needs. Care workers visit people’s houses so the carer can have a break from their caring responsibilities. The service is based in the Thicketford Centre in the Tonge Moor area of Bolton. Car parking is available at the rear of the centre. At the time of the inspection there were 75 people using the service and 24 support staff.

There was a registered manager in place at the service. 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 told us they felt safe. The service’s recruitment procedures were robust and there were enough staff employed to meet the needs of people who used the service.

There were appropriate safeguarding adults and children and whistle blowing policies in place. Staff demonstrated an understanding of safeguarding issues and were confident to follow the procedures.

Accidents and incidents were recorded and followed up appropriately. There was an up to date medicines policy in place and all staff had undertaken medication training.

The service had a robust induction programme in place, which included mandatory training and shadowing. Training was on-going for staff and the electronic monitoring system produced an alert when refresher courses were due.

Staff supervisions were carried out regularly and staff told us these were useful and productive. Staff meetings were undertaken on a monthly basis and provided a forum where practice issues could be raised and discussed.

Care plans included relevant health and personal information and were up to date and complete. Consent was sought where relevant and the service was working within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (2005) (MCA).

People who used the service told us they were treated with respect and that staff were polite and pleasant.

Relevant policies were in place regarding confidentiality and data protection. The service positively promoted autonomy and was committed to helping people be as independent as possible.

People who used the service were encouraged to give feedback, after the first six weeks of receiving the service, then annually via a survey or informally at any time and the information was used to promote continual improvement in service delivery. Information produced by the service was clear and comprehensive.

The service endeavoured to match up support workers with people who used the service to help ensure a positive experience. People were allocated a team of staff to help maintain consistency when cover was required for sickness and annual leave.

People’s preferences were taken into account regarding times and support workers. The service worked flexibly around people’s appointments and other commitments.

A number of events were held by Crossroads for people to attend and socialise with others in a similar situation if they wished to.

Complaints were taken seriously and the service’s policy followed. There had been no complaints received by the service in the last 12 months.

Policies were updated regularly and staff informed of any changes. This helped ensure staff knowledge was current.

There were a number of quality assurance measures in place to help maintain a high level of quality and drive continual improvement.

Staff observations and spot checks were regularly undertaken and supervisions were carried out regularly.