Archived: Church Road

Updated 29 January 2020

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

One inspector conducted the inspection on 16 and 17 December 2019.

Service and service type

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

The service did not have a manager registered with the CQC. However, the manager of the service had applied to the CQC to be a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who is legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided. It is a requirement of the provider’s registration that they have a registered manager.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. This included information about important events the provider had notified us about that had happened at 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

During the inspection we met four people who lived at the service. The people had complex needs and could not describe to us how they felt about living at the service. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us. We spoke with the service manager, the deputy manager, two support workers, the provider’s area director and the provider’s positive behaviour support specialist. We also met with a relative of a person who uses the service and a visiting adult social care professional. We looked at the care plans for three people, the care records of two people, as well as medicines support records and a variety of systems related to the management of the service.

After the inspection

We continued to seek further information and clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We spoke with four relatives and guardians of people and two adult social care professionals who had worked with the service.

Updated 29 January 2020

About the service

Church Road is a supported living service registered to provide personal care for up to six people adults with significant learning disabilities and complex needs. At the time of our inspection five people were living there. A team of support staff provided 24 hour care and support to people. The service was managed by Care Management Group Ltd, part of Achieve Together, a national organisation providing care and support services.

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

We saw that applications had been made to the Court of Protection for authorisation to deprive some people of their liberty but the provider had not informed the Care Quality Commission (CQC) of the outcome of one of these applications, as required by the regulations. The CQC is still considering what action it needs to take in relation to this matter.

The provider had arrangements in place to monitor the quality of the service, but these had not always been effective as the records in respect of some people using the service were not always kept up to date. The provider took action when they had identified improvements were required.

Staff were caring and treated people with respect. Relatives and professionals said they felt people were safe and their care needs were met.

People had detailed care and risk management plans and these were regularly reviewed. Plans reflected people’s physical, mental, emotional and communication needs and their care and support preferences. Staff were aware of and responsive to people's individual needs and how they wanted to be supported.

Staff supported people to manage behaviours that may challenge others in line with good practice. Staff felt supported by their managers and received an induction, training and regular supervision.

People were supported to be healthy and to access healthcare services. People received their medicines in a safe way and as prescribed. Staff supported people with their food and drinks appropriately.

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 provider sought feedback about the service from people’s relatives and other stakeholders. The provider had suitable processes in place for responding to complaints and concerns and used these to develop the service.

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

Rating at last inspection (and update):

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 10 January 2019). The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when they would improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the service is now rated good.

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.