Background to this inspection
Updated
29 November 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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.
Inspection team
The inspection was carried out by 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.
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. This service is also a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats.
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 was a registered manager in post.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.
Inspection activity started on 9 November 2022 and ended on 10 November 2022. We visited the location’s office on 9 November 2022.
What we did before the inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since it had registered with us, including notification the provider had sent to us. We also gathered feedback from the local authority.
We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
During our inspection we spoke with 1 person and 4 relatives. We received a further 3 emails with feedback from people receiving care. We also spoke with the registered manager, 2 of the supported living managers and 2 care staff. We looked at the care records for 5 people. We checked the care they received matched the information in their records. We looked at records relating to the management of the service, including audits carried out within service.
Updated
29 November 2022
About the service
Supported Living Staffordshire is a service offering personal care to 22 people within the own homes. The service supports adults with learning disabilities and autism. People receive varying levels of support including 24 hours a day. People live in a variety of supporting living service across the west midlands area.
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
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.
People were supported by enough suitable recruited staff who had received appropriate training. The polices within the home supported good practices, including infection control and safeguarding procedures.
Right care
Care plans and risk assessments were in place and when these incidents had occurred had been reviewed with people to reflect their current needs. There were systems in place to govern the home to ensure people were receiving the support needed. The audits completed were robust and effective in identifying areas of improvements.
The principles of STOMP (stop over medicating people with learning difficulties) had been considered and referenced when people were prescribed ‘as required’ medicines.
Staff enabled people to access specialist health and social care support in the community. People were happy with the caring support they received from staff.
Right culture
People were supported by a management and staff team which understood the holistic needs of supporting someone with autism or a learning disability. They worked closely with the person and relatives where appropriate to deliver appropriate care to people. They ensured the individual was at the forefront of this care, to deliver positive outcomes for people.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection and update
The last rating for this service was good (published 11 December 2020)
Why we inspected
The inspection was prompted in part due to safeguarding concerns received. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Supported Living Staffordshire on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our reinspection programme. If we receive any concerning information, we may inspect sooner.