Brandon Supported Living - Gloucestershire

Updated 21 August 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. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by two inspectors.

Service and service type

This service provides care and support to people living in a number of ‘supported living’ settings, so that they can live as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support.

The service had several managers 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

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a supported living service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered managers would be in the office to support the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 14 people who used the service and seven relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with ten members of staff including the provider, registered managers, deputy managers, senior care workers and care workers.

We reviewed a range of records. This included six people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at six staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We analysed additional information provided by the registered managers. We spoke with three professionals who regularly visited the service.

Updated 21 August 2019

About the service

Brandon Supported Living is a supported living service for people with physical and learning disabilities. This service provides care and support to people living in separate supported living’ settings, so that they can live as independently as possible. 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. There were 150 people receiving the regulated activity of ‘personal care’ from Brandon Supported Living at the time of the inspection.

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.

The designs of the homes fitted into the surrounding residential areas . There were deliberately no identifying signs, intercom, industrial bins or anything else outside to indicate the premises were care homes. Staff were also discouraged from wearing anything that suggested they were care staff when coming and going with people .

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

The vision of Brandon Supported Living was to promote a service in which people are ‘able to realise their potential as equal and active citizens who have control over their lives.’ All staff and senior management demonstrated this clear vision and a highly positive person-centred culture was seen throughout. Staff had set high standards for themselves and this promoted an exceptionally positive culture which challenged disability perceptions, improved the confidence of people and had very positive impacts on the lives of the people using the service.

People were supported to focus on making a positive contribution to others, the service and the community and achieve their potential. We saw examples of people being supported to take leadership roles in the service. This included the recruitment of staff at all levels, training of staff and quality assurance processes. Throughout the inspection, we found people and staff were motivated and passionate about equality and empowering people to live the lives they want.

People and carers spoke overwhelmingly of the positive support, guidance and healthcare interventions people had received. They were full of praise for the staff in terms of their kindness and compassion. People were 'very happy' with the service they received. We received positive comments about their views and experiences. People told us they felt safe because the staff were "Caring and enjoyed what they did". People and their families viewed the staff as experts in their knowledge and skills when supporting people with complex health needs.

People's aspirations were explored with them and developed. Staff worked hard to make sure, that where it was possible, people had opportunities to lead as full a life as possible. They made sure daily activities were tailored to meet people's individual needs, preferences and abilities. Staff made sure people had opportunities to enjoy themselves. People's suggestions and ideas were sought and valued when it came to planning these activities.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

The registered managers and extended leadership team offered exceptional leadership and had a clear vision about the direction of the service. They were highly committed to improving people's lives and ensuring people had the best care they could receive. They expected the same high standards from the staff who were also committed to these shared values. The management team were very much part of the overall care team at Brandon Supported Living. They were very involved in people's care, visible and approachable. Staff working at the service clearly understood their role and worked hard to promote a homely atmosphere.

There was a robust quality assurance system in place to ensure people received the best possible service. The registered managers worked closely with partner agencies and services to promote best practice within the service and make a positive impact to people’s lives. The service was constantly striving to innovate to ensure they were providing the best possible care to the people they were supporting. The registered managers had developed a strong leadership team within the service to ensure the high standards implemented were sustained in their absence.

The service applied the principles and values of Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These ensure that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes that include control, choice and independence.

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.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was Good (published 15 December 2016).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

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.