- Community substance misuse service
Blossom Street - York Drug and Alcohol Service
Assessment report published 5 November 2025
Contents
Ratings - Substance misuse services
Our view of the service
Date of assessment Wednesday 20 to Thursday 21 August 2025.
Change Grow Live provides a community substance misuse service at Blossom Street – York Drug and Alcohol Service which is. At the time of the assessment, the service provided support for individuals who use substances, as well as support for any children and other family members who may have been impacted by the individual's substance use.
We rated the service as good. The service was previously rated outstanding. People were supported to have choice and control, were involved in planning their care and staff were invested in client’s wellbeing. The service identified and supported the wider health needs of clients and supported clients from different community groups. The service worked in collaboration with external partners, and the organisation encouraged improvement initiatives and innovative practice. However, improvements were required in terms of record keeping and the provider had some staffing pressures impacting the service.
Mental Capacity Act Compliance
The service did not always document the assessment of mental capacity or review this. We reviewed 6 care records and found a lack of evidence in 5 of the 6 records of the assessment of mental capacity on admission and on an ongoing basis to acknowledge the fluctuation of capacity.
However, all staff completed mandatory training in the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguarding (DoLS) and at the time of our inspection this had 100% compliance. The staff we spoke with had a good understanding of mental capacity and were confident about how to assess it. Staff told us they took all practical steps to enable clients to make their own decisions and provided good examples regarding raising safeguarding concerns.
People's experience of this service
We spoke with clients who told us they were treated kindly and compassionately. They stated that staff encouraged independence, choice and control.
Clients spoke with us about how staff supported them holistically, understanding the impact of their social, physical and mental health needs. Clients felt supported to speak up, make positive changes to their life and learn coping skills to prevent relapse.
Staff worked collaboratively with partner agencies, signposting and supporting clients to access other means of support.
Some clients told us that they would like access to a psychologist within the service which was not a specialism provided by the service at this time. Clients appreciated that some staff had their own lived experiences and found this inspiring.
All clients told us they felt safe in the service and that the service was clean.