Background to this inspection
Updated
18 February 2016
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.
This inspection took place on 21 December 2015 and was announced. The provider was given 48 hours’ notice because we needed to make sure the office was open and the manager would be available to speak with us. The inspection team consisted of one inspector.
Before the inspection we reviewed the information we held about the service including the Provider Information Return (PIR) which the provider completed before the inspection. 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. We also reviewed the information we held about the service including safeguarding alerts and information received from people who used the service.
On the day of the inspection we spoke with the registered manager at the agency’s office. After visiting the offices, we visited three of the carers who supported people in their home. We met with two people receiving support. We also carried out telephone calls to two people who received care, and spoke to health and social care professionals.
We looked at five people’s care records and examined information relating to the management of the service such as staff support and training records and quality monitoring audits.
Updated
18 February 2016
The inspection took place on 21 December 2015, and was an announced inspection. The manager was given 48 hours’ notice of the inspection as we needed to be sure that the office was open and staff would be available to speak with us.
Guideposts Shared Lives provides a service for adults who need support and who want to live as part of a family or household. It is an alternative to residential care for people who want to live or stay in a homely environment, but cannot manage on their own. It provides services for people with learning, physical or sensory disabilities, and people with mental health problems. The service provides long term placements and respite care. It is responsible for co-ordination between the people who use the service and the carers with whom people live.
Guideposts Shared Lives staff liaise with social workers, who oversee the processes and care management of the people who need support. The staff are responsible for recruiting carers who will provide the care and support that people need within the carers’ own families or households.
For the purposes of this report we will refer to those who provide support as ‘carers’. At the time of our inspection, the service had 63 carers, and was providing support to 37 people.
Our inspection process included the recruitment of carers to support people, how they were matched to people needing support, how well they were trained and supported themselves, and how people who were being supported felt about their placements.
The service had a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
People were safe and carers knew what actions to take to protect them from abuse. The provider had processes in place to identify and manage risk. People received care from carers who were well supported and trained. Carers understood the need to obtain consent when providing care.
People were supported with meals and to make choices about the food and drink they received. Carers supported people to maintain good health and access health services when needed.
Assessments had been carried out and personalised care plans were in place which reflected individual needs and preferences.
The provider had an effective complaints procedure and people had confidence that concerns would be investigated and addressed. The service benefitted from a clear management structure and visible leadership. A range of systems were in place to monitor the quality of the service being delivered and to drive improvement.