Dimensions South West Counties Domiciliary Care Office

Updated 16 August 2018

‘We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check 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 was a comprehensive inspection. The inspection took place on 18, 19, 20 and 21 June 2018 and was announced. We gave the service three days notice that we would be coming as we needed to make arrangements for visiting and speaking with people. The inspection was carried out by one inspector and two experts by experience. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of service.

Before the inspection we reviewed other information we held about the service, including previous inspection reports and notifications sent to us by the provider. Notifications are information about specific important events the service is legally required to send to us. We also looked at information in the 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 visited 15 people in their homes and spoke with 18 people on the telephone. We spoke with ten relatives, 12 members of staff, seven locality managers, the registered manager the performance coach, the regional managing director and one Dimensions associate family consultant. We reviewed ten care and support plans, five staff personnel files and other records relating to the monitoring and management of the service.

Updated 16 August 2018

Dimensions South West Counties Care Office provides personal care and support to people with learning disabilities. The organisation manages services provided to people across five counties from the registered office location. At the time of our inspection services were being provided to 108 people who lived in their own homes, either alone or in shared houses with support.

At our last inspection we rated the service good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of good and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

The care service had been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.” Registering the Right Support CQC policy.

There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People living at the service said they felt safe. Staff knew how to protect people from harm and abuse. Risk assessments had been completed and when risks had been identified, care plans provided clear guidance for staff on how to reduce the risks. Medicines were managed safely.

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 supported this practice. Staff said they were trained and supported in their roles. People were supported to have enough to eat and drink.

Care plans were person centred and detailed. Health action plans were in place. We saw examples of staff providing additional levels of support, such as staying with people when they were in hospital. The service had received positive feedback from people and their families. We observed many positive interactions between staff and people. Staff spoke passionately about their roles.

There were robust quality assurance systems in place. Staff spoke highly of the management team and management values. The provider’s values were embedded in the day to day support of people. The service met all the relevant fundamental standards.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.