Archived: Leeds Learning Disability Community Support Services - South and South East

People told us they were very happy with the quality of their care, and spoke highly of their regular care workers. One person told us, 'I've lived here a long time the staff are lovely.' Another person said, 'I like it here, I live with (person's name) we get on well. Staff take me out shopping on my support day.'

We spoke with 15 people who used the service and they all told us they felt safe and if they did have any concerns they would speak with staff. One person told us, "I feel very safe in my flat and if I didn't I would definitely tell staff."

People who used the service told us there were sufficient staff to meet their needs. One person said, "I am happy with the service I get." Another person said, "I get enough time with staff." It was clear from our observations that staff and people who used the service were comfortable with each other and appeared to know each other well.

We saw minutes of meetings for two of the locations. They showed topics discussed with people who used the service included; support plans, views of current living arrangements, activities and any areas that could be improved. We also saw there was a 'DVD newsletter'.

People spoken with told us they were happy with the care and support they received. One person told us; 'I tell the staff what I want and they help me. They are all very good.'

We observed how staff were respectful and treated people in a friendly way. We saw people being offered choice with regard to where and how they wanted to spend their time. People looked well cared for and appeared happy and relaxed in the company of the staff.

When we asked to see an overview of the training completed by staff working in the service the assistant managers were unable to provide this information. They could not easily identify individual staff members who were in need of refresher update training in areas such as safeguarding. This meant people may be put at risk if staff were not up to date if their knowledge and skills were not maintained. They told us this was being addressed with the introduction of a new electronic quality assurance database which would provide this facility within the next few weeks.

We saw the service had recently carried out a customer survey which was sent out to all people using the service and/or their relatives. The information provided was then collated and an action plan formulated to address any areas for improvement within the service.