Care Support Essex Branch

Care Support Essex Branch is an extra care service that provides personal care to 120 people across four sites. These four sites were large apartment complexes with shared amenities such as activity rooms, gardens and dining areas. People living at these sites lived in their own flats and did not need to use the service unless they wanted to. Three of the four sites were in the London borough of Havering and one site was in the county of Essex.

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

There were systems in place to safeguard people from abuse. Risks to people were assessed and mitigated. Recruitment processes were robust and there were sufficient staff available to support people safely. Staff were trained in infection control and there were infection prevention measures in place. Medicines were managed safely. Lessons were learnt when things went wrong.

Quality assurance processes were in place but were not always effective. We have made a recommendation to the provider about following best practice around auditing documents and records because we found staff sometimes audited their own work. People and relatives thought highly about the service. The registered manager understood their responsibilities towards the people they worked with and regulatory requirements placed upon them. People and staff engaged with the service. The service worked with other professionals to the benefit of the people using the service.

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 06 March 2019).

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about people’s safety. We believed there was risk present at the service including allegations of abuse notifications we had received from the service in the past 12 months. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe and well-led only. We reviewed the information we held about the service. No areas of concern were identified in the other key questions. We therefore did not inspect them.

We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from these concerns. Please see the safe and well-led sections of this full report.

Ratings from previous comprehensive inspections for those key questions were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.

The overall rating for the service remains Good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Care Support Essex Branch on our website at www.cqc.org.uk

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.

People’s experience of using this service:

People spoke highly of the service. One person said, "The care is brilliant."

Staff at the service knew what to do if they suspected abuse. There were systems in place to safeguard people from abuse. People were risk assessed to keep them safe from harm. There were sufficient staff at the service. Suitable staff were recruited to work with people. Staff knew how to administer medicines. Staff wore gloves and aprons to control and prevent infection. The service learned lessons when things went wrong.

People were assessed before the service worked with them. Staff were trained on how to do their jobs and were supervised in their roles. Staff supported people with their food. The service was linked with other agencies and communicated well with them. People were supported to access health care professionals, such as GPs. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People told us they were well treated by staff, who were kind to them. People and their relatives were involved with their care and signed their consent to treatment. People’s privacy was respected and they were treated with dignity.

People’s care plans recorded their needs so staff knew them. People told us they knew how to make complaints and the service responded to them. The service recorded people’s end of life wishes.

People thought highly of the staff and the management of the service. The registered manager felt supported in their role. The service had good links with other agencies to the benefit of people using the service. The provider used audits, spot checks and surveys to drive improvement in the service. There were meetings where people could discuss their housing and care. Relatives could attend a quarterly forum. Staff had meetings where they could be involved in the service.

Rating at last inspection: This service had not previously been inspected as it was a new service.

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection because the service was registered in February 2018 and we inspect services within 12 months of their registration.

Follow up: ongoing monitoring of the service