Aspire2b

Updated 18 June 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 team was made up of one inspector.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to young people and their families living in their own houses and flats.

Registered Manager

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to manage the service. 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.

At the time of our inspection there was not a registered manager in post. The nominated individual was in process of registering as the manager with CQC. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

Notice of inspection

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

Inspection activity started on 18 May 2022 and ended on 23 May 2022. We visited the location’s office on 20 May 2022.

What we did before the inspection

We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make.

We sought feedback from the local authority commissioners and safeguarding team, and from Healthwatch, Wakefield. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with two family members about their experience of the care provided. We met with the nominated individual. We spoke with three care workers.

We looked at written records, which included two young people’s care records and two staff files. A variety of records relating to the management of the service were reviewed. This included reviewing policies and procedures.

Updated 18 June 2022

About the service

Aspire2b is a domiciliary care agency supporting young people with a learning disability or autism and their families. At the time of this inspection the service was supporting five young people in four different families with personal care.

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

There were systems in place to recognise and respond to any allegations of abuse. Safe recruitment procedures made sure staff were of suitable character and background. Families received support from a consistent staff team who were knowledgeable and experienced. Any incidents or feedback was shared with staff so lessons could be learnt and practice improved.

Staff were provided with an effective induction and relevant training to make sure they had the right skills and knowledge for their role. Staff were well supported in their jobs. Young people were supported to maintain good health and have access to health and social care services, as required. Young people were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

Families were supported by kind and caring staff who knew them well. Care records provided person-centred information to enable staff to meet young people’s needs and wishes. The service was well-led. The service had up to date policies and procedures which reflected current legislation and good practice guidance. There were systems in place to monitor and improve the quality of the service provided.

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

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 24 April 2020 and this was the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.