Background to this inspection
Updated
6 November 2019
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.
Inspection team
The inspection was carried out by one inspector.
Service and service type
This service provides care and support to people living in specialist ‘extra care’ housing. Extra care housing is purpose-built or adapted single household accommodation in a shared site or building. The accommodation is bought and is the occupant’s own home. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for extra care housing; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support service.
The service did not have a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. The previous registered manager had left the service and a new one had recently started. This person had made an application to register with the Care Quality Commission. This person will be referred to as ‘the manager’ throughout the report.
Notice of inspection
This inspection was announced. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure that the provider or manager would be in the office to support the inspection.
What we did before inspection
We reviewed information we had received about the service since it had started. We sought feedback from the local authority and commissioners 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.
During the inspection
We spoke with two people who used the service and one relative about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with five members of staff including carers, duty managers, the manager and the area support manager. We reviewed a range of records. This included two people’s care records including medication records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service including policies and procedures were reviewed.
After the inspection
We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We gained feedback from with two professionals who support people using the service.
Updated
6 November 2019
About the service
Your Life Norwich operates an assisted living scheme in a purpose-built private development called Daisy Hill Court. The service is a domiciliary care agency providing personal care to older people living in their own flats. The development consists of 58 flats with some shared communal areas such as dining room, lounges and gardens.
Not everyone living at Daisy Hill Court received the regulated activity. 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. At the time of inspection seven people were using the regulated activity.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People told us they felt safe with the carers at Your Life. There were robust recruitment procedures in place to ensure staff were suitable to work in the service. Risks to people’s safety had been assessed and action taken in a way that managed the risk but maintained people’s independence as much as possible. People received their medicines as prescribed. We have made a recommendation about the recording of people’s support with medicines.
People were involved in putting together their care plan based on their preferences for support. People’s needs were holistically assessed including social and emotional needs as well as physical and health needs including support with meal preparation. The service worked well in partnership with other professionals to meet people’s needs and improve their wellbeing. 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.
Staff were kind and caring and people felt involved in their care. Staff took the time to get to know people and understand their preferences. Staff were thoughtful in maintaining privacy, dignity and confidentiality.
The service was person centred and responded to people’s changing needs. People were supported to participate in the community and socialise in the way they chose. This included access to activities within the development, activities in the wider community as well as maintaining links with friends and family. The service was not currently delivering end of life care but provided information and guidance to people about completing advance care plans.
People and staff were positive about the management and the quality of care provided. Managers supported and empowered staff to support people according to their needs and preferences. The service had an open and honest culture where people and staff felt confident to speak up if they had concerns. There were systems in place to monitor and review the quality of care and that information was used to improve the service for the future. There was an ethos of continual learning where staff were encouraged to improve their practice and the care offered by the service.
Rating at last inspection. This service was registered with us on 22 October 2018 and this was the first inspection.
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the date the service registered with us.
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.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk