Northbrook

Updated 25 January 2023

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 two inspectors.

Service and service type

This service provides care and support to people living in four ‘supported living’ settings, so 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.

Registered Manager

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service three days’ 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 13 December 2022 and ended on 16 December 2022. We visited the service on 13 December and 15 December 2022.

What we did before the inspection

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 also sought feedback from the local authority. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We met three people living at Northbrook. We spoke with two of them, including one person who was not receiving a regulated activity, and five relatives about their experience of the support provided. We spoke with five members of staff including two registered manager’s, a deputy manager and two support workers. We reviewed a range of records. These included three people's care records, three people's medication records, and six staff files in relation to recruitment, training and supervision. We also reviewed a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including staffing rotas, policies, procedures and quality assurance records.

Updated 25 January 2023

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.

About the service

Northbrook is a supported living service providing personal care to two people at the time of the inspection. It is based in premises that include ten self contained flats, which have their own kitchenettes and shower rooms. There are also a suite of offices on the second floor. On the ground floor there are communal areas which include a large dining area, a sensory room, a cinema room, a large meeting room and communal kitchen. There are also three additional premises that operate as satellite services from Northbrook, these accommodate a further four people who receive personal care.

Not everyone who uses 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

Right Support:

People and relatives told us how they or their family member could choose how they wanted to live and received the support they needed to do this. Staff encouraged and supported people’s choice and independence.

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 encouraged and supported to maintain a healthy lifestyle and supported to enjoy a wide variety of hobbies and interests which maintained their sense of well-being.

Risks were well managed with the least possible restriction and people were well supported to maintain and develop an independent lifestyle and lead active lives.

Right Care:

Care and support were provided according to people’s individual needs and wishes. Staff ensured people’s privacy and dignity were respected. People felt safe with staff and enjoyed spending time with staff who they knew well. Staff knew people’s care needs well and ensured care and support was delivered according to people’s individual needs.

Support plans were clear, detailed and provided up to date guidance and information for staff. They gave clear information for how staff could recognise if people were upset or anxious. Staff followed positive behaviour support plans to help people avoid becoming distressed in the first place, and to ensure appropriate safe, effective care was provided.

Staff had training on how to recognise and report potential abuse. There were enough staff on each shift to ensure people were supported safely. Staff received a robust induction and completed specialist training to ensure they supported people safely.

Right Culture:

People using the service, relatives and staff had confidence in the leadership of the service and felt it was well-led. The registered manager and provider-maintained oversight of the service through regular conversations with people, relatives and staff as well as through a programme of quality assurance audits to ensure the service was working to the provider’s policies and procedures.

The provider’s monitoring processes were effective in helping to ensure people consistently received good quality care and support. Both permanent and the regular agency staff knew and understood people well and were responsive to their needs. People and those important to them were involved in planning their care.

The registered manager demonstrated joint working with health professionals which provided specialist support to people, involving their families and other professionals as appropriate. Staff demonstrated good understanding around providing people with person centred care and spoke knowledgably about how people preferred their care and support to be given.

People, relatives and staff felt confident in raising any concerns with the registered manager and told us any concerns would be listened to and acted upon.

Staff and relatives spoke of an open, supportive and friendly culture within the service, that placed people and their needs at the heart of the service.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 28 January 2021 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.