Archived: Shared Lives Service

This was the services first inspection since its re- registration with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). This was because the service had moved premises.

The Shared Lives Service is run by Blackpool Borough Council and is based at Bickerstaffe House in Blackpool town centre. The service links vulnerable adults who need personal care and support with specially recruited carers from the community, so that both benefit from the informality of sharing a lifestyle in an ordinary domestic environment. The role of the service is to arrange and support these links over a period of time, to the mutual benefit of the carer and the person placed. At the time of our inspection visit the service supported 85 people.

There was a registered manager in place. 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.

We found recruitment procedures were safe with appropriate checks undertaken before new carers joined the service. These included employment and personal references along with a Disclosure and Barring Service check (DBS). One carer we spoke with said, “My recruitment was very thorough and took approximately four months. They have to be sure you are suitable for the service.”

Carers received regular training and were knowledgeable about their roles and responsibilities. They had the skills, knowledge and experience required to support people with their care and social needs. On the day of our inspection visit we observed nine carers attending food hygiene training. One carer we spoke with said, “As you can see today we are completing food hygiene training which has been tailored to meet our needs as a domestic household.”

We found the service had systems in place to record safeguarding concerns, accidents and incidents and take necessary action as required. Carers had received safeguarding training and understood their responsibilities to provide safe care and report safeguarding concerns.

People told us they were comfortable raising any issues, concerns or complaints with their carers or with shared lives officers. The service had arrangements in place to deal with these appropriately.

People supported by the service told us how happy they were living with their carers. They told us they lived together as a family, felt safe and were supported to undertake activities independently where possible. One person said, “They are my family and treat me like that. I feel very safe and that makes me happy.” Another person said, “My carers helped me to go to university and socialise in the community. I am very happy.”

People who used the service had a pre-service assessment of their needs undertaken and a personalised plan was then produced outlining the support the person required. The plan documented all aspects of the persons needs including how they wanted their care and support to be provided, their wants, needs, likes and dislikes. This enabled the service to provide a personalised approach to the care and support they provided.

Risk assessments had been developed to minimise the potential risk of harm to people who used the service. These had been kept under review and were relevant to the support provided.

The registered manager understood the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). This meant they were working within the law to support people who may lack capacity to make their own decisions.

Carers responsible for the administration of medicines had received training to ensure they had the competency and skills required. People were supported to manage their own medicines where able. One person said, “I take care of all my medication from going to the chemist and ensuring it is correct. [Carer] is always there to guide me if necessary.”