Human Support Group - Smithy Croft

Updated 19 October 2021

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 one inspector.

Service and service type

This service provides care and support to people living in specialist 'extra care' housing. Extra care housing is purpose-built or adapted single household accommodation in a shared site or building. The accommodation is rented and is the occupant's own home. People's care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for extra care housing; this inspection looked at people's personal care and support service.

The service had a manager 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 the service is small and people are often out and we wanted to be sure there would be people at home to speak with us.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service. We sought feedback from the local authority 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 took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report. We also requested feedback from Healthwatch Stockport. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with four people about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with six members of staff including the registered manager, the regional manager, the team leader and care staff. We reviewed a range of records. This included four people's care records and associated risk assessments. We looked at three staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision and a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures.

After the inspection

We spoke with a healthcare professional who provided feedback about the service.

Updated 19 October 2021

About the service

Human Support Group – Smithy Croft is an extra care service which provides care and support to people who live in their own flats. The building is owned and maintained by a housing association.

At the time of our inspection the service was providing personal care for 17 people.

People's experience of using this service

People told us they were treated with respect. People were involved in planning their care and had the opportunity to speak up. People received their medicines safely and there were regular checks carried out to ensure medicines were managed appropriately.

People's care needs were assessed and care plans developed to meet their needs. People received the right care in line with these plans. Risks to people's safety were assessed and plans were in place to manage these. There were systems in place to make sure the environment was safe, and that people's welfare was checked.

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. People had consented to their care. When people did not have the capacity to make bigger decisions for themselves the provider worked with the local authority to make plans in their best interests.

There were enough staff available and staffing was planned to meet people's day to day needs. Managers had a good understanding of people's needs. There were systems in place to maintain good communication and ensure everyone understood their duties. The provider carried out regular audits to make sure the quality of people's care remained good.

Rating at last inspection

This was our first inspection since the service was registered on 06 December 2019.

Why we inspected

This was a planned 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