28 November 2022
During a routine inspection
About the service
Scarborough & District Mencap is an independent charity which provides support to children and adults with learning disabilities. Four services are available at the location, which include a day service and a domiciliary care service providing the regulated activity of personal care. At the time of the inspection the service supported 4 people in the community 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
Right Support:
People were assisted to manage their own medication. However, records and quality checks in this area were lacking. We could not be assured that all areas of medication management were checked for safety and quality. Care plans were in place to help staff understand people’s care needs. Some areas of the records needed expanding to ensure all information relating to that person’s care and the risks to them was detailed and recorded.
Staff focused on people’s strengths and promoted what they could do, so people had a fulfilling and meaningful everyday life. Staff supported people to achieve their aspirations and goals.
People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives, however, more detail was needed in the care records to fully explain people’s capacity. This would ensure staff supported people in line with their best interests. We have made a recommendation about this.
Right Care:
People received kind and compassionate care. Staff protected and respected people’s privacy and dignity. They understood and responded to their individual needs. The service had enough appropriately skilled staff to meet people’s needs and keep them safe. People understood information given to them because staff supported them consistently and understood their individual communication needs. People could take part in activities and pursue interests that were tailored to them. The service explored opportunities for people to try new activities that enhanced and enriched their lives.
Right Culture:
People led inclusive and empowered lives because of the ethos, values, attitudes and behaviours of the management and staff. Staff placed people’s wishes, needs and rights at the heart of everything they did. The service enabled people and those important to them to work with staff to develop the service. Staff valued and acted upon people’s views. The registered manager worked hard to promote an open and honest culture in the service. Staff felt supported int their roles and able to raise any concerns without fear.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the Care Quality Commission (CQC) website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
The last rating for this service under the previous provider was good (published 5 October 2017).
Why we inspected
This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service and to provide the service with a rating under the new provider.
We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the safe and well led sections of this full report. You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Scarborough & District Mencap on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
Enforcement and Recommendations
We have identified a breach in relation to the governance of the service at this inspection. We have made a recommendation around the providers understanding of the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (2005).
Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.
Follow up
We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.