Chorley & South Ribble Short Break Services

Updated 20 June 2018

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 26 April 2018 and it was unannounced. This meant the home did not know we were going to inspect. The inspection was carried out by two adult social care inspectors from the Care Quality Commission.

Prior to our inspection we reviewed all the information we held about this service, which included notifications informing us about significant events, such as serious injuries and safeguarding concerns. We looked at any information received from other professionals, people who used the service and their family members.

We had received the Provider Information Return (PIR) within the timeframes requested. This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the home, what the home does well and any improvements they plan to make.

We used a planning tool to collate all this evidence and information prior to inspecting the home.

During our inspection, we spoke with three people who were staying at Chorley & South Ribble Short Break Services. However, we were not able to obtain verbatim feedback from them. At this service people who stay at the home are known as ‘guests.’ We contacted three relatives by telephone and spoke with three members of staff, as well as the registered manager of the home. We contacted community health and social care professionals, as well as local commissioning groups responsible for external monitoring of the service.

We ‘pathway tracked’ the care of two people who were staying at the home. This enabled us to determine if people received the care and support they needed and if any risks to people’s health and wellbeing were being appropriately managed.

We also looked at other documentation, which included medicine records, two staff personnel files, training information, minutes of meetings, surveys, audits of the service and other quality monitoring systems.

Updated 20 June 2018

This inspection took place on 26 April 2018 and it was unannounced. We last inspected the service on 10 and 17 January 2017. At that time we found a breach of regulations in relation to safe care and treatment, around the control of medicines and the management of risks. We also found a breach of regulations in relation to safeguarding service users from abuse and improper treatment.

Following that inspection, we asked the provider to complete an action plan to show how they would make improvements in the areas of safe and well led. At this inspection we found the provider had made the improvements required in accordance with their action plan, so the key questions of safe and well led were found to be rated good. During this inspection we found the service to be meeting the requirements of the current regulations.

Chorley & South Ribble Short Break Services is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided and both were looked at during this inspection.

Chorley & South Ribble Short Break Services is located in a residential area of Leyland. It provides short term accommodation for up to four adults, who have a learning disability, physical disability or sensory impairment and require support with their personal care needs.

All accommodation is at ground floor level. Bedrooms are of single occupancy and have ensuite facilities, two of which are larger in size and have ceiling tracking and specialist facilities suitable for those with a physical disability. There is ramped access to the home and also to the garden area. On road parking is permitted. Public transport links and local amenities are also nearby.

The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.

At the time of our inspection there were 44 people who stayed in the home regularly for short breaks. On the day we inspected the home there were four people staying at Chorley & South Ribble Short Break Services. A team leader was in charge of the home on our arrival. The registered manager, who had been in post for 18 months was on annual leave. However, staff notified her of our presence and she did attend the inspection.

A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘Registered Persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

At this inspection, we found that people were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Mental capacity assessments had been conducted and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards had been submitted to the Local Authority, as was deemed necessary. We observed verbal consent was obtained before any activity took place. However, this was not always formalised. We made a recommendation about this.

We found recruitment and disciplinary procedures to be robust and these were being followed in day-to-day practice. People’s human rights were being protected and anti-discriminatory practices had been adopted by the home. This helped to safeguard those who stayed at Chorley & South Ribble Short Break Services.

Staff members were very knowledgeable about those in their care. We found new staff to have completed induction programmes and regular supervision sessions were subsequently conducted. Annual appraisals were in the process of being developed. A wide range of training modules were provided for the staff team, although updates could have been more frequent. Evidence was available to show staffing levels were sufficient and were calculated in accordance with people’s individual needs.

Although, additional minor issues in relation to medicines management were noted at this inspection, these were dealt with immediately. Therefore, we found that overall medicines were now being managed safely.

Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPS), emergency procedures and robust policies had been established. The premises were safe, well maintained and hygienic throughout. The home was very pleasant and suitable for those who lived there. This helped to maintain their safety and well-being.

Systems and equipment within the home had been serviced, in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations. This helped to ensure they were fit for use and therefore promoted the safety of those who lived at Chorley & South Ribble Short Break Service. Accidents and incidents had been recorded appropriately and a system was in place for assessing risk and monitoring the quality of service provided.

It was clear the management team were open, transparent and visible during the inspection process. Action plans had been developed in response to feedback and the results of the auditing process. However, documentation around risk assessing could have been more streamlined and more details recorded about lessons learned when things went wrong. This would provide a more structured approach to monitoring the quality of service delivered. We made a recommendation about this.

Records were retained in a confidential manner. Those who stayed at the home or their relatives were able to access a range of general information and their records, should they wish to do so. The home produced information in various formats, such as easy read and pictorial presentations.

People’s needs had been thoroughly assessed and the care plans we saw were well written, person centred documents. Systems involving digital technology were being gradually introduced in order to move the service forward.