Vision Homes Association Supported Living Services

Updated 21 March 2023

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.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

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

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 15 February 2023 and ended on 22 February 2023. We visited the location’s office on 15 February 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). 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 used information gathered as part of monitoring activity that took place on 16 January 2023 to help plan the inspection and inform our judgements. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 2 people who used the service, a relative and an advocate. We spoke with 6 staff which included the registered manager, deputy manager, care coordinator and care staff. We looked at two care plans and medication administration records. We looked at staff recruitment and training records, records relating to health and safety and the management of the service.

Updated 21 March 2023

About the service

Vision Homes Association Supported Living Services is a domiciliary care agency providing the regulated activity of personal care to people living in their own houses or flats. The service provides support to younger adults who have a learning disability, autistic spectrum disorder, physical disability and/or sensory impairment. At the time of our inspection there were 6 people receiving the regulated activity of 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

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

Right Support:

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. Risks were assessed, monitored and managed with the involvement of people so they were protected, informed and their wishes respected. This meant people were enabled to have appropriate discussions about positive risk taking and enjoy their lives safely. People were supported to access the local community and to do the things they wanted to do.

Right Care:

People received support which was tailored to meet their needs and preferences. People were supported to be as independent as they could be. Staff treated people with respect and ensured their protected characteristics were understood and respected. People were supported by staff who knew them well and who were trained and competent in their role. Staff had been trained in safeguarding adults from abuse and understood when and how to report concerns.

Right Culture:

The registered manager and staff team were committed to achieving the best outcomes for people with a focus on supporting them to live the best life possible. Staff had the knowledge, skills and attitude to provide responsive and compassionate care tailored to people's needs and aspirations. The provider’s systems to monitor the quality and safety of the service provided had improved. The views of people, their relatives and staff were valued. The registered manager worked with other agencies to achieve good outcomes for people. There was an open and honest culture and learning from when things when wrong.

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

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service at the previous premises was requires improvement (published 11 September 2019) and there were breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

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

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions safe, effective and well-led which contain those requirements.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to 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 Holcombe House on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

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