Archived: Strada Care Ltd

Updated 27 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 over two days.

Service and service type

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

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. 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.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because the service is small, and people are often out, and we wanted to be sure there would be people at home to speak with us.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed the information the registered manager sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We reviewed the notifications received from the provider, since the last inspection. The law requires providers to send us notifications about certain events that happen during the running of a service. We contacted local authority teams engaged with the service for information to aid the planning of our inspection. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with six people who used the service about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with six members of staff including the registered manager. Because the majority of people who used the service were unable to give detailed responses to our questions, we used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at three 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.

Updated 27 November 2019

About the service

Strada Care Ltd provide personal care for people in supported living settings, so that they can live in their own home 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.

Strada Care support older people and adults with learning disabilities and/or mental health issues. The care service has 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. At the time of our visit they were supporting 21 people at five locations across East Surrey and Sutton.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

There were enough staff deployed across the service to ensure people received the support they needed, and that they were funded for. The provider carried out appropriate checks on prospective staff to ensure they were suitable and safe to support the people that used the Strada Care service. We have recommended that the provider review the possible impact of Brexit on their staffing provision.

People were supported to have their medicines when they needed them, and as prescribed. We have recommended that the provider considers the risks from flammable topical creams that some people have prescribed .

People were safe because staff understood their roles and responsibilities in minimising the risk of harm. Apart from the example above, hazards to people’s health and safety, whether that be from their support needs, or the environment, had been assessed and plans were in place to guide staff on keeping them safe . Staff followed safe working practices with regards to minimising the spread of infection. Accidents and incidents were reviewed across the service to understand what had happened and to prevent a reoccurrence.

Assessments of people’s needs ensured that the service could support them in the way they wanted. Staff received appropriate training and supervision to ensure they had the skills necessary to meet people’s needs. People were supported to access health care professionals should they become unwell, or for routine check-ups. Guidance given by health care professionals from these checks were well managed to ensure staff understood and catered for the changes in a person’s needs.

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 told us they were happy with the care and support they received from staff. People were involved in day to day decisions about their care and support as much as possible. People were treated with dignity and respect by the staff. Staff knew the people they cared for as individuals and were seen to take time to sit and talk with them, and involve them in activities and duties around the houses they lived in.

Care plans were under review and being updated onto a new electronic system. The new system enabled staff to update records quickly and spend more time providing care and support.

Quality assurance processes were in place and these ensured that a good level of care and support was given. The registered manager had built a staff team that had a shared passion for improving the care people received. As a result, they had made changes across the service that has improved the rating to good in all the areas that we inspect.

The registered manager understood their role and responsibilities with regards to the Health and Social Care Act Regulations and had ensured the requirements had been met.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 25 October 2018).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the date of registration.

Follow up:

We will continue to monitor intelligence 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.