Background to this inspection
Updated
7 June 2019
The inspection:
We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection team:
Two inspectors conducted the inspection.
Service and service type:
Hanover Supported Living provides care and support to people living in five different supported living settings, so they can live as independently as possible. People's care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate the premises used for supported living, this inspection looked at people's personal care and support.
The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.
The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.
Notice of inspection:
The inspection was unannounced.
What we did:
Before the inspection we looked at all the information we held about the provider. This included information we had received from the local authority, through notifications of significant events and because the provider had submitted a Provider Information Return (PIR). The PIR 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.
During the inspection we visited three of the supported living settings. We spoke with five people who used the service, five support workers, one team leader, the registered manager and the nominated individual. We observed how people were being cared for and supported. We looked at the care records for six people from three different settings, how medicines were being managed in three of the settings, records of accidents, incidents and complaints, the staff recruitment and training records for six members of staff and other records used by the provider to monitor the quality of the service.
We gave questionnaires for the registered manager to distribute to people using the service, their relatives and staff and asked for these to be returned directly to the inspection team.
We also spoke with a representative from the local authority quality monitoring team and one person's social worker.
Updated
7 June 2019
About the service: Hanover Supported Living is a group of five supported living services in the London Boroughs of Hillingdon and Hounslow. They provide care and support to adults with learning disabilities and mental health needs. At the time of our inspection there were 23 people using the service.
The service is managed by New Horizon Care Home Ltd, a private organisation who also runs a residential care home in the London Borough of Hillingdon.
People’s experience of using this service:
The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and mental health needs using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.
The outcomes for people using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support. People's care was personalised and the support from staff enabled people to make choices about their lives and how their needs should be met. People were involved in planning their own care and regularly reviewing this. The provider supported people to reflect on their own needs and what had worked well, and not so well, for them, so that care plans could be adapted and changed to reflect this.
Whilst we found that people were being safely cared for, some of the practices around medicines management meant that there was a risk that things might go wrong. We discussed these with the registered manager and they agreed to make changes to ensure that these practices were improved and people's medicines were managed safely.
People using the service felt safe. They liked the staff who supported them and thought they were kind and caring. People were supported to learn independent living skills and take part in a range of different activities. They made choices about how they spent their time and what they ate.
The staff worked closely with other healthcare professionals to make sure people's healthcare needs were assessed, monitored and met. Some people had additional mental health needs. The staff had a good understanding of these.
The staff were happy working at the service. They felt supported and told us they had regular team and individual meetings with the registered manager and nominated individual. They had access to training at the service, and externally, and found this useful.
The provider had systems for monitoring the quality of the service, obtaining feedback from stakeholders and making improvements where needed. They investigated and responded to accidents, incidents and complaints. There was evidence of regular audits and changes made as a result of feedback from people using the service and others.
Rating at last inspection: The service was rated Good at our last inspection which took place on 31 October 2016 (Published 15 November 2016).
Why we inspected: We inspected the service as part of our scheduled plan of inspections based on the last rating.
Follow up: We will continue to monitor the service and carry out another inspection in line with our planned schedule of inspections, or sooner if needed.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk