Brandon Trust Support Living - Bristol and North Somerset

Updated 13 January 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.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by two inspectors and an Expert by Experience. 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 ‘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.

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 were 13 registered managers in post, each responsible for their own group of locations.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was announced. We gave notice, as the service is large, and we needed to plan the inspection accordingly and gain consent from people to visit their homes.

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 all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We visited the registered office and spoke with seven registered managers. We visited five supported living locations and spoke with eight people, we observed staff interactions with three others. We spoke with seven members of support staff. Following the inspection, we spoke with five people being supported by telephone and six family members. We looked at people’s care plans and other relevant documents such as audits, medicine records and meeting minutes.

Updated 13 January 2023

About the service

Brandon Trust Support Living - Bristol and North Somerset provides personal care to people living in their own homes. At the time of our inspection 162 people were being supported with personal care.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

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.

Right Support:

• The service supported people to have the maximum possible choice, control and independence be independent and they had control over their own lives.

• People were supported by staff to pursue their interests.

• Staff supported people to achieve their aspirations and goals.

• Staff enabled people to access specialist health and social care support in the community.

• Staff supported people to make decisions following best practice in decision-making. Staff communicated with people in ways that met their needs.

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.

• Staff understood how to protect people from poor care and abuse. The service worked well with other agencies to do so. Staff had training on how to recognise and report abuse and they knew how to apply it.

• The service had enough appropriately skilled staff to meet people’s needs and keep them safe.

• People could communicate with staff and understand information given to them because staff supported them consistently and understood their individual communication needs.

• People who had individual ways of communicating, using body language, sounds, Makaton (a form of sign language), pictures and symbols could interact comfortably with staff and others involved in their treatment/care and support because staff had the necessary skills to understand them.

Right Culture:

• People led inclusive and empowered lives because of the ethos, values, attitudes and behaviours of the management and staff.

• People received good quality care, support and treatment because trained staff and specialists could meet their needs and wishes.

• People were supported by staff who understood best practice in relation to the wide range of strengths, impairments or sensitivities people with a learning disability and/or autistic people may have. This meant people received compassionate and empowering care that was tailored to their needs.

• Staff knew and understood people well and were responsive, supporting their aspirations to live a quality life of their choosing.

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 the service at the previous premises was good, published 28 June 2018.

Why we inspected

We undertook this inspection to follow up on concerns we had received about the service. The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns about the culture of the service, staffing levels and how people’s behaviours were managed. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.