Background to this inspection
Updated
4 March 2022
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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.
Inspection team
The inspection was carried out by two inspectors, one pharmacist inspector and one Expert by Experience who interviewed people who used the service over the phone. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.
Service and service type
This service provides care and support to people living in two ‘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 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. During the inspection the registered manager was unavailable, and we were supported by the newly appointed deputy manager. However, following this inspection we spoke with the registered manager on the phone.
Notice of inspection
We gave a short period notice of the inspection because some of the people using it could not consent to a home visit from an inspector. This meant that we had to arrange for a ‘best interests’ decision about this.
Inspection activity started on 9 December 2021 and ended on 2 February 2022. We visited the office location on 6 January 2022.
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 two people who used the service about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with three members of staff including the deputy manager, senior team leader and care workers. We spoke with one visiting professional.
We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records and multiple medicine records. We looked at five 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 continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data, quality assurance records, policies and procedures. We spoke with a further person who used the service and three relatives. We spoke with one professional who regularly visit the service.
Updated
4 March 2022
About the service
Future Care Home (FCH) is a supported living service providing personal care to six people in two different supported living schemes. 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.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People were protected from the risk of harm and abuse. There were effective systems and processes in place to minimise risks to people. Risks had been identified, assessed and reviewed. Care workers knew how to identify and report concerns. They had been recruited safely and showed good knowledge and skills in relevant areas including medicines administration and infection control. However, we found that staff would benefit from training more tailored towards the needs of people with learning disabilities and autistic people.
The service used positive behaviour support approach, which was opposed to restrictive practices. 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 deputy manager had introduced a range of quality assurance processes, including systems necessary to maintain safe environments. The registered manager and her deputy manager ensured policies and procedures met current legislation and were up to date. Relatives and people who used the service told us they were asked for their views about the quality of the service.
We expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. Right Support, right care, right culture is the statutory guidance which supports CQC to make assessments and judgements about services providing support to people with a learning disability and/or autistic people.
The service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of Right support, right care, right culture.
Right support:
• The model of care and setting maximised people’s choice, control and independence. The service supported people to gain greater independence by teaching them new life skills.
Right care:
• Care was person-centred and promoted people’s dignity, privacy and human rights. The service provided person centred care, for example, we saw that people’s spiritual needs had been addressed and they were supported to maintain and build positive relationships if they wanted to.
Right culture:
• The ethos, values, attitudes and behaviours of managers and care staff ensured people using services led confident, inclusive and empowered lives. People who used the service were supported to take part in activities, education and employment and we were told by external professionals that they had gained confidence since being supported by FCH.
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 4 December 2019).
Why we inspected
We received concerns in relation to medicines management, staffing, care planning and lack of management oversight. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, effective, responsive and well-led only.
For the key question not inspected, we used the rating awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.
The overall rating for the service has remained good. We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from these concerns. Please see the safe, effective, responsive and well-led sections of this full report.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Future Care Homes Limited 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.