Archived: NAS Community Services (Kingston)

NAS Community Services (Kingston) is a small service, based in the Royal Borough of Kingston, which provides people with personal care and support. The service specialises in caring for adults who have a learning disability and/or are on the autism spectrum. There were two people using the service at the time of this inspection who lived in supported living accommodation in the community. Supported living is where people live independently in specifically designed or adapted accommodation, but need some help and assistance to do so. People’s support is funded by the local authority.

People’s experience of using this service:

• At this inspection the service met the characteristics of Good in all areas.

• People received safe care and support. The provider had systems in place to manage safeguarding concerns and staff were appropriately trained in this area.

• People were safe from harm because appropriate risk assessments had been carried out with regard to activities people took part in as well as the safety of the premises.

• Sufficient numbers of staff were employed and worked in the service so that people’s needs were met.

• People were safely supported with their medicines and general health.

• Care staff had received training to enable them to carry out their role effectively.

• Care staff were supported by their management team to do their job.

• People had good relationships with care staff who protected their rights to lead as normal a life as possible. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible.

• The service had policies and management systems which supported and ensured good care practice.

• Relatives told us they felt people were safe and well cared for in the house. People living in the house were unable to provide detailed verbal feedback but were able to indicate that they felt comfortable and at ease with staff.

• We found where people lacked capacity that the appropriate authorisations were in place with regard to lasting power of attorney.

• People accessed health care services when needed and records were maintained in relation to each person’s health, appointment visits and medicines.

• People were supported to take part in activities of interest and their preferences, likes and dislikes were known to staff.

• The provider had a complaints procedure which relatives were aware of, although the service had an open-door policy which welcomed informal discussions and conversations whenever needed.

Rating at last inspection

At our last inspection of 21 February 2017 the service was rated “Good”.

Why we inspected:

• This inspection was part of our scheduled plan of visiting services to check the safety and quality of care people received.

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.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

NAS Community Services (Kingston) is a small service, based in the Royal Borough of Kingston, which provides people with personal care and support. The service specialises in caring for adults who have a learning disability and/or are on the autism spectrum. There were two people using the service at the time of this inspection who lived in supported living accommodation in the community. Supported living is where people live independently in specifically designed or adapted accommodation, but need some help and assistance to do so. People’s support is funded by the local authority.

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 a legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act and associated regulations about how the service is run. The current service manager had submitted an application to the CQC, to take over this role at the service. This was being processed at the time of this inspection.

People were supported, with help from their relatives and others involved in their care, to make decisions and choices about their care and support needs. People were encouraged to communicate their wishes using the method which suited them. Staff presented information in a way that helped people understand the support they received. People's support plans reflected their specific needs and preferences for how they wished to be supported. These were reviewed regularly by staff who checked for any changes to people’s needs.

Staff were accessible and available to people when they needed them. The provider ensured staff were suitable and fit to work at the service by carrying out employment and criminal records checks before they could start work. Staff received appropriate training and support to help them to meet people’s needs. Staff knew people well and what was important to them in terms of their needs, wishes and preferences.

Staff knew how to ensure people were protected if they suspected they were at risk of abuse or harm. Staff were given appropriate guidance on how to support people to minimise identified risks to keep them safe from harm or injury in their home and community.

Staff monitored people’s general health and wellbeing. People were supported to take their prescribed medicines. When staff had any issues or concerns about people's health or welfare they sought appropriate medical care and attention promptly from other healthcare professionals. Staff supported people to make healthy lifestyle choices in terms of their diet and nutrition and encouraged to eat and drink sufficient amounts to reduce the risk to them of malnutrition and dehydration.

People spoke positively about staff. Staff respected people’s right to privacy and to be treated with dignity. People were encouraged to take part in activities and interests at home or out in the community and to maintain social relationships that were important to them. If people were unhappy, the provider had arrangements in place to deal with their concerns appropriately.

People and staff were asked for their views about the quality of care and support provided and how this could be improved. They said senior staff were approachable, accessible and supportive. Senior staff monitored the quality of care and support provided. They undertook surveys and regular audits of the service and took appropriate action if any shortfalls or issues were identified through these.

We checked whether the service was working within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005. Staff were aware of their roles and responsibilities in relation to the Act.