We carried out a review of the data available to us about Lydbury Crescent Chance for a Break Service on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Lydbury Crescent Chance for a Break Service, you can give feedback on this service.
Lydbury Crescent Chance for a Break Service is a care home which provides short breaks for people living with learning disabilities, physical disabilities and sensory impairments and autistic people. The service provides accommodation and personal care for up to five people at any one time. The service had 10 people booked to receive respite services during the year. There were four people using the service at the time of the inspection.
We expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence, and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. Right support, right care, right culture is the statutory guidance which supports CQC to make assessments and judgements about services providing support to people with a learning disability and/or autistic people.
People’s experience of using this service
Right support: Staff supported people in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. The right amount of suitably skilled and experienced staff worked flexibly around people’s needs, choices, and interests.
Right care: Managers and staff were committed to ensuring people received person-centred care and support which promoted their privacy, dignity, and human rights. Managers and staff knew how to protect people from poor care and abuse, and they had a positive attitude towards ensuring people were able to take positive risks as part of an everyday lifestyle.
Right culture: People were valued, respected, and supported to live their chosen lifestyle throughout their stay. Staff empowered people to make choices and to be independent. The registered manager inspired confidence in the staff team and led by example. Quality assurance processes enabled ongoing improvement. Learning was shared and community presence was well established.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
The last rating for this service was good (published 21 October 2017).
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection.
We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Lydbury Crescent Chance for a Break Service on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.
Lydbury Crescent Chance for a Break Service is based in a residential area of Kirkby and run by Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council. The service provides short term respite care for up to five adults with a learning disability. At the time of the inspection visit there were three people using the service.
At the last inspection in April 2015 the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.
Risks people faced were identified and measures were put in place to reduce the likelihood of harm occurring. Staff knew the different types of abuse and how to recognise and report any concerns they had. People were kept safe by the right amount of suitable staff. The process for recruiting new staff was safe and thorough. Background checks were carried out periodically to ensure staff remained suitable for their role. Procedures were followed to ensure people received their medicines safely.
People received care and support from staff who received training and supervision for their role. People's rights and best interests were promoted in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005. People's consent was obtained prior to the delivery of any care and support. People's dietary needs were understood and met and people enjoyed a variety of food and drink appropriate to their needs.
People were treated with dignity and respect and their privacy was promoted. Positive relationships had been formed between people who used the service, family members and staff.
People's needs were assessed prior to each stay they had at the service and where a change in a person's needs had been identified their care plan was updated to reflect this. Information was made available to people in an accessible format. A complaints policy and procedure was made available to people and relevant others. People and family members were confident about complaining should they need to.
The leadership of the service was inclusive and positive. The quality and safety of the service was assessed and monitored and the required improvements were made so that people received a service which was safe, effective and responsive to their needs.
Further information is in the detailed findings below.
This was an announced inspection, carried out on the 23 & 24 April & 14 July 2015 .
Lydbury Crescent Chance for a Break Service is based in a residential area of Kirkby and is operated by Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council. The service provides short term respite care to a maximum of three adults. There is one ground floor bedroom and bathroom with stair access to further bedrooms and bathing facilities on the first floor. Aids and adaptations are provided to support people during their stay.
The service has had a registered manager since December 2014. 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.
The last inspection of Lydbury Crescent was carried out in April 2014 and we found that the service was not meeting all the regulations that were assessed. During this inspection we found that the required improvements had been made.
People told us and communicated that they felt safe. Relatives and carers told us that they had no concerns regarding the safety of their relatives whilst they were staying at the service. Staff had a good understanding of how to keep people safe and what action to take if they felt people were at risk from abuse. Staff were supported by safeguarding policies and procedures. The environment was clean and tidy. Regularly maintained equipment was available to support people with their mobility and independence.
A pre-stay assessment was carried out prior to people staying at the service. When required care plans and risk assessments were updated to help ensure that people’s needs, wishes and lifestyle choices were planned for and met. Where necessary people were supported by local health care services to meet their individual health needs.
Staff demonstrated a good awareness of people’s needs and wishes and they supported people in a dignified and respectful manner.
Procedures were in place to ensure that only suitable staff were employed. Staff received sufficient training and regular support to enable them to carry out their role safely.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is required by law to monitor the operation of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and to report on what we find. Policies and procedures were in place to guide staff in relation to the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). The registered manager understood what their responsibilities were for ensuring decisions were made in people’s best interests and there were procedures in place to ensure that these decisions were recorded.
The registered manager and staff team were in the process of further developing the service to improve people’s experiences during their stay. These improvements included extending people’s opportunities to access the local community, reviewing care planning documentation and improving the way in which people’s views and opinions about the service are sought.
Following our visit we spoke with the manager of the service.
Is the service safe?
People who use the service, their relatives and carers felt the service was safe. We saw that medicines were managed appropriately. We found that the premises were suitable and well maintained.
We saw that some systems for identifying and managing risk needed improving. This was because the systems in place for identifying and reporting of potential safeguarding concerns were not always acted upon. We found that not all of the staff team had received training in health and safety and potential risks identified with changes to the services had not been considered.
Is the service effective?
People's health and care needs were assessed and care plans developed.
An effective system was in place to obtain and record any changes in people's care needs and wishes.
Is the service caring?
People were supported by pleasant and attentive staff.
People who used the service and their relatives and carers told us that that staff were caring, their comments included 'very friendly, daughter loves the staff'; 'staff seem very nice'; 'my son loves it and never wants to come home' and 'always trusted them and the staff are excellent.'
Is the service responsive?
The service responded to the changing needs and wishes of people by regularly updating individuals' care plans.
Weekly meeting took place at the service to gather the views of people who use the service.
The relative of one person who uses the service told us that in the event of a family emergency the service offered support straight away to ensure that their relatives' needs were met.
Is the service well-led?
A quality assurance system was in place which included seeking the views of people who used the service, their relatives, carers carers and staff. However, the system in place failed on occasion to identify areas of improvement required within the service.
We carried out this inspection to check whether the service had taken action to ensure records were well maintained, relevant and up to date. We looked at care files relating to three people who had stayed at the service, spoke with the manager and looked at records relating to staff training.We found that records had been reviewed and updated where required. Information was clear, easy to locate and relevant. Records also provided a clear way to audit the quality of the service provided.
People told us they had been happy with the care and support provided. Their comments included, 'Brilliant' and 'It's a nice place'. One of the people staying there told us they had received the care and support they had needed. However they also told us that they would have liked the opportunity to get out and about more.
Staff displayed a good understanding of the support people needed with their nutrition and how to meet individual needs. We found that people had been offered a variety of meals and provided with the support they had needed to keep them safe and well.
People told us that they had liked the staff, found them knowledgeable and experienced and trusted them. One relative described them as, 'Smashing, easy to talk to". We found staff had a good understanding of individual needs and choices and had received the training and support they had needed to undertake their role effectively.
People told us that they would have felt comfortable raising a complaint with staff if they had needed to. We found that information on how to complain and the process that would be followed was available within the service.
Records were stored safely and securely and staff had an understanding of how to maintain confidentially of information. However we found that not all records had been completed fully or were up to date.
Throughout our visit we observed that the people staying at Lydbury Crescent were supported to engage in activities of their choosing. This included attending their regular day service, going out and about in the community and spending time in the house socialising and pursuing their hobbies. One of the people staying at Lydbury Crescent commented, 'It's nice to be here. They are kind people.' Staff spent time engaging with people as well as meeting their basic support needs and we noted that the atmosphere was lively with people engaging with each other, staff and planned activities.
Staff had a good understanding of people's support needs including how to meet their health and personal care needs and the different ways people communicated. Care records had been updated regularly to ensure information was up to date prior to people staying at the service.
People told us that they thought Lydbury Crescent was a safe place to stay and that they had felt confident to raise any concerns or complaints that may arise.
Staff working at Lydbury Crescent had worked for the organisation for some time. However records relating to their recruitment were not available for inspection. It was therefore not possible to establish whether all of the required information had been obtained.
"I like staying here', 'I like the staff', 'They talk to me about what I would like to do."
We saw that the service takes account of people's views and adapts the service to meet people's choices, needs and welfare.
Our observations showed that people were treated with dignity and had good relationships with the staff.