Laurel Court

Updated 27 September 2017

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked 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 comprehensive inspection took place on 31 July and 2 August 2017 was announced. The provider was given 48 hours’ notice because the location provides a supported living and domiciliary care service and we needed to be sure that someone would be in.

The membership of the inspection team consisted of one adult social care 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. There area of expertise was in mental health and learning disabilities.

We reviewed information we had received from the provider such as statutory notifications. We contacted the local authority commissioning and monitoring team and reviewed all the safeguarding information regarding the service. The registered provided had completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

We spoke with the registered manager, the service manager, two care officers, one care assistant and the care services manager on the day of the inspection. We spoke with five people using the service on the day of inspection. We received feedback from two professionals following our inspection. We looked at four care records, three staff files, accident and incidents and quality monitoring systems.

Updated 27 September 2017

The inspection of Laurel Court took place on 31 July and 2 August 2017 and was announced. We told the provider that we would be coming because we needed to be certain there would be people in the service for us to talk with. The service was last inspected on 2 March 2015 and at that time was meeting the regulations.

Laurel Court is a supported living environment for adults who have learning disabilities, physical disabilities or sensory impairment. It has 26 flats which, on the day of the inspection, were occupied by 19 permanent tenants and two were for emergency or respite use.

At the last inspection the service was rated Good overall and Outstanding in well-led. At this inspection we found the service remained Good and Outstanding in well- led and the service met all relevant fundamental standards.

Staff understood how to keep people safe and were aware of the process to follow if they had any concerns. Risks had been assessed and recorded to ensure people were protected from harm without overly restricting people’s freedom.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service support this practice.

Staff received on-going support from the management team through a programme of regular supervision and appraisal and they had been trained to ensure they had the knowledge and skills to care for people.

Food and drink was tailored to people's individual needs and we observed staff supporting people appropriately to maintain their nutritional and hydration needs where required.

Positive relationships between staff and people who lived at Laurel Court were evident. People's independence was promoted well by staff who understood how to maximise their independence.

People spoke highly of all the support staff and enjoyed living in Laurel Court. We saw lots of evidence that people were actively involved in arranging their support and staff facilitated this on a daily basis.

There was clear evidence of person-centred care. People were involved in activities based upon their established routines and preferences. Care records contained detailed information on how to support people.

We saw evidence of strong governance with robust systems in place to address any concerns and promote improvement. The service was led by an enthusiastic registered manager whose values were reflected in the quality of the support provided.

The registered manager embedded reflective practice within the team to drive forward quality improvement within the service

The registered manager was visible in the service and communication was open, honest and transparent. Staff had clear direction and were sure about their roles and responsibilities. Systems and processes for ensuring the quality of the service were securely and effectively in place.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.