Archived: Selborne Care Limited

Selborne Care Limited is a large provider of care services. This location is registered to provide care and support to people in their own homes. The registered manager told us they currently provided only one 24hour supported living service to one person that included the regulated activity of personal care. The provider informed us that other people using their service received support with day to day tasks in their homes, such as cleaning or support with shopping. These services are not regulated by us and were not included in our inspection.

The supported living service provided by Selbourne Care Limited offers personal care and support to one person with a learning disability and autism.

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. The registered manager was registered with us for this service and two other small services provided by Selborne Care Limited.

Staff knew how to keep the person they supported safe. There were processes to minimise risks to the person’s and staff safety. These included procedures to manage identified risks with the person’s behaviours that could challenge. Care staff understood how to protect people from the risk of abuse and how to report any concerns. The suitability and character of staff was checked during the recruitment process to make sure they were suitable to work with the person who used the service.

The registered manager understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA), and care staff understood the person’s non-verbal communication and respected their decisions and told us they understood they should never force the person to do anything.

There were enough staff to meet the supported living package of care of 272 hours a week. Recruitment was taking place to fill two care staff vacancies and extra shifts were covered by existing care staff or experienced agency staff when needed. Staff demonstrated a kind and caring attitude toward the person they supported.

Staff received an induction when they started working for the service and completed regular training to support them in meeting the person’s needs effectively. Staff knew the person well and had the knowledge of how to respond to the person’s needs. Information about the person and assessed risks was available for staff to refer to in the person’s care plan.

Staff described how they knew if the person was unhappy about something and what action they would take. Relatives knew how to raise concerns or make a complaint if needed. Management told us concerns were used as a way of learning and to improve the service provided.

Staff felt supported by the management and they were able to contact the office and management at any time. There were systems to monitor and review the quality of service people received and understand the experiences of people who used the service. This was through regular communication with the person’s relatives and staff, annual quality surveys, spot checks on care staff and audits undertaken at the service.