Archived: Walsall Shared Lives

Updated 20 December 2016

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, 27 and 28 September 2016 and was announced. We gave the provider 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This is because we needed the provider to obtain consent from people using the service that they were happy to share with us their experiences about their care. The inspection team consisted of one inspector 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.

As part of the inspection we reviewed the information we held about the service. We looked to see if statutory notifications had been sent by the provider. A statutory notification contains information about important events which the provider is required to send to us by law. We sought information and views from the local authority. We also reviewed information that had been sent to us by the public. We looked at the information the provider had sent to us in their Provider Information Return (PIR). A PIR is a document that we ask providers to complete to provide information about the service. We used this information to help us plan our inspection.

During the inspection we spoke with seven people who used the service and one relative. We spoke with the manager, nine shared lives carers and two shared lives workers. Shared lives workers coordinate placements and are office based staff. Shared lives carers are those who support people either in their homes or in the community. We spoke with people by telephone, attended a focus group with people who used the service and met shared lives carers in their home. We reviewed records relating to people’s medicines, five people’s care records and records relating to the management of the service; including recruitment records, complaints and quality assurance.

Updated 20 December 2016

Walsall Shared Lives provides support to people either in the community or in the home of registered shared lives carers. At the time of the inspection there were 50 people using the service for support with personal care, most of whom were living with learning disabilities. The inspection took place on 26, 27 and 28 September 2016 and was announced. This registered location had not previously been inspected. A registered manager was in place, however, they were not working for the service during our 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.

People were supported by a staff team who could recognise signs of abuse and knew how to report concerns. People were supported by shared lives carers who understood the risks to them and how to keep them safe from harm. Risks and any actions required to reduce these risks were not recorded in risk assessments. People were happy with the support they received with their medicines.

There were sufficient numbers of shared lives carers to meet people’s needs. Shared lives carers were recruited safely. Support carers who provided ‘relief’ care when shared lives carers were absent did not have the required pre-employment checks completed.

People were happy with the skills of their shared lives carers and felt their needs were met. People’s rights were not always upheld by the effective application of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. People received the support they needed with their food and drink. People’s day to day health needs were met and they were supported to see healthcare professionals when needed.

People were supported by a staff team who were kind and caring towards them. People were supported to be involved about choices around the care they received. People’s independence was promoted and their privacy and dignity was respected.

People received care that met their needs and preferences. People were supported to maintain their personal interests and to access a wide range of leisure opportunities. People felt able to complain if required.

People felt the service was good and well managed, however they were not always aware of who the manager was. The manager had developed a staff team who were committed and motivated in their roles. Quality assurance and governance processes were not adequate and did not ensure any required improvements in the service were made. Care plans did not always reflect the care and support people received. People were not always fully involved in the planning and review of their care. The provider had not ensured accurate records were maintained regarding the care and support people received.

The provider was not meeting the requirements of the law regarding the management of the service. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of the report.