Archived: Clearwater Care

Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided.

The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.

People’s experience of using this service:

The way the service was managed needed to improve. Governance systems needed to ensure people received a consistently good service. Communication between the service and people's relatives needed to improve.

Staff knew how to prevent the spread of infection, but some relatives raised concerns about infection control and the cleanliness of some of the locations.

Staff told us the registered manager was approachable, and staff told us they knew them well. Spot checks and audits were completed to ensure the quality of the service was maintained. Staff were caring and compassionate. People spoke positively about the service and the support being provided.

People told us they were safe with the staff that supported them. Risk assessments covered all areas of risk and staff knew how to keep people safe from harm. Systems and processes were in place to safeguard people from the risk of abuse. There had been no recorded incidents of seclusion or restraint. Staff had received training in infection control and had access to personal protective equipment. People were supported to take their medicine in a safe way.

The outcomes for people using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support by promoting choice and control, independence and inclusion. People's support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible for them to gain new skills and become more independent.

People told us they received effective care, from trained staff. Staff were trained in a range of topics, including positive behaviour support, autism and epilepsy. People told us they were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and that staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service support this practice. Staff supported people to maintain a healthy diet, in line with their assessed needs and were supported to access health care if this was needed.

Staff were kind and caring and had developed positive relationships with people. Staff understood the importance of respecting people’s privacy dignity and independence.

Assessments and support plans were in place identifying what was important to people and how people needed to be supported. The support people received was centred around them and they were involved in any decisions made. The provider had a complaint’s process which people were aware of to share any concerns. At the time of the inspection, no one was being supported at the end of their life.

Rating at last inspection: This service was rated Good (2 June 2017)

Why we inspected: This was a planned comprehensive inspection

Follow up: We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.

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

The service provides 24 hour care and support to fifteen people with learning disabilities who live in their own homes across six different locations.

The service has a registered manager in post. 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 service was managed by the registered manager and two service managers who shared responsibility for running the service on a day to day basis across the six locations.

People told us they were happy and felt safe using the service. We saw that people were comfortable and relaxed with staff. Relatives told us their family members were safe. Staff had received training in safeguarding and knew how to protect people from the risk of abuse and how to report any concerns.

Risks to people's safety were assessed and guidance was provided to staff on how to manage them. Staff were aware of the risks to people and the management plans in place keep people safe from harm. There were sufficient staff deployed who had been safely recruited to meet people’s needs.

Medicines were managed safely and people received their medicines as prescribed. People received appropriate support to take their medicines by staff who were trained and assessed as competent to administer medicines safely.

Staff received an induction, mandatory and specialist training so they had the skills and knowledge to meet people's needs. Staff felt they were well supported by the management team and received supervision and annual appraisals to help them develop professionally.

The service supported people to have enough to eat and drink which reflected their preferences and helped them maintain a healthy balanced diet. People's health and wellbeing was maintained. The service kept detailed health records and shared this information appropriately with the relevant health and social care professionals to ensure that people received any treatment they required in a timely fashion.

Care was planned and delivered in a way that met people's needs and took account of their wishes and preferences. Staff encouraged and supported people to maintain their independence and confidence. People were involved in the assessment of their needs and their consent was sought before providing care and support.

Staff were caring and treated people with kindness, dignity and respect. People and staff had positive relationships. Staff knew people well and understood people’s needs and the way they communicated and used this knowledge and understanding to help people make decisions.

People received care and support in a personalised way and were supported to make choices about how they wanted to live their day to day lives including exploring interests and maintaining relationships that were important to them. Staff supported people to take part and try new activities and experiences in their homes and in the community.

The provider had a complaints policy and procedure in place which was shared with people and their relatives who told us they knew how to raise concerns or complaints.

The culture within the service was person-centred, open and transparent with a focus on empowering people and promoting independence.

There was a clear management structure in place and staff and people felt comfortable talking to the managers about any issues and were sure that any concerns would be addressed.

We have made a recommendation about reviewing the current system of sharing information with people’s relatives and/or representatives.

There were systems in place to monitor the safety and quality of the service provided. People's views and opinions were sought through ongoing reviews and satisfaction surveys. Suggestions for change were listened to and actions taken where possible to improve the service provided.