Background to this inspection
Updated
1 October 2022
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 Care Act 2014.
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.
The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.
Inspection activity started on 06 September 2022 and ended on 09 September 2022. We visited the location’s office on 06 September. We gathered the views of people’s relatives and staff from 07 September to 09 September 2022.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since their registration. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report. We used all this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We spoke with three people who used the service, two relatives, the registered manager and provider. In addition, we spoke with seven staff members including senior staff. We looked at a range of records. This included two people’s care records, two staff recruitment files, training records, and audits of the service.
After the inspection
We continued to seek clarification from the registered manager to validate evidence found. We looked at their quality assurance systems and training records for staff.
Updated
1 October 2022
About the service
Ability 2 Achieve provides Care at Home services. It provides a service to people living with autism or a learning disability, people living with mental ill health and to both older and younger adults. At the time of the inspection there were 108 people being supported by the service of which 22 received 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:
The service supported people to have choices and promoted their independence. Staff had completed training to ensure they understood the meaning of the service and to give people choices about their lives and support. People were supported to pursue their interests and to achieve their aspirations and goals. One person said, “I love helicopters and have been in one.” People were encouraged to have maximum choice and control of their lives and their staff helped them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Peoples medication was managed by staff who had received medication training to ensure safe processes were in place.
Right Care:
People received kind and compassionate care from the agency. Staff and the management team protected and respected people’s privacy and dignity. They spoke about people with respect and were proud of the skills they had gained. A staff member said, “Love the job and learn from the people I work with daily.” Staff understood how to protect people from poor care and abuse. They had training on how to recognise and report abuse which was regularly updated. There were sufficient appropriately recruited and skilled staff to meet people’s needs and encourage them to develop their life skills. Staff had good ways of communicating, using body language, sounds, and pictures so they could interact with people in a positive way. Staff, people supported, and their advocates cooperated to assess risks people might face. Where appropriate, staff encouraged and enabled people to take positive risks and live an independent life as possible.
Right Culture:
People led inclusive and empowered lives because of the ethos, values, attitudes and behaviours of the management team and staff. People and those important to them, including advocates, were involved in planning their care. Staff evaluated the quality of support provided to people, involving the person, their families and other professionals as appropriate. Staff ensured risks of a closed culture were minimised, so people received support based on transparency and respect. Ability 2 Achieve treated people and their families with respect. This was confirmed by comments we received. One relative said, “They always include us in what we think is required, our opinions and ideas matter. It is a great service.” Relatives told us they felt comfortable to raise any issues and were confident they would be listened to and dealt with.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
The service was rated good on 18 December 2018.
Why we inspected
We undertook this inspection to assess that the service is applying the principles of Right support right care right culture.
Follow Up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.