Archived: Live N Care Limited

Updated 6 June 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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

The inspection was prompted in part a whistleblowing allegation. During the inspection we looked at areas relating to this and we found no evidence to support the concerns.

Inspection team:

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type:

Live N Care is a supported living service. This service provides care and support to people living in a number of ‘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:

The inspection was unannounced.

We visited the office location on 15 and 16 April 2019 to see the manager and office staff; and to review care records, staff files, policies and procedures. We visited people who used the service in person on 16 April and spoke to a relative on the telephone on 17 April 2019.

What we did:

Our inspection was informed by evidence we already held about the service, such as notifications. These are events that happen in the service that the provider is required to tell us about.

Providers are required to send us key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information, called a Provider Information Return (PIR), helps support our inspections. Due to the inspection being brought forward the provider had not been asked to complete a PIR.

We checked for feedback from members of the public and local authorities. We checked records held by Companies House.

We spoke with three people who used the service and one relative.

We spoke with the provider's director, the registered manager, the trainee manager and one care support worker.

We reviewed four people's care records, three staff personnel files, audits and other records about the Management and quality assurance of the service.

Updated 6 June 2019

About the service: Live N Care is a supported living service that was providing personal care to 17 people at the time of the inspection.

People’s experience of using this service:

People's lives were positively impacted by Live N Care staff. People were empowered to achieve their goals and dreams and supported to live active busy lives.

People and relatives were very happy with the care and support they received and spoke positively to us about staff, saying they thought of them as family. We were told, ''There’s nothing I’d change about the service I receive from Live N Care,'' and ''It’s a great company, I much prefer being with Live N Care [to previous provider].''

The registered manager and director were passionate about placing people at the heart of the service and encouraged staff to do the same. They constantly strove to identify ways for people who use the service to achieve their potential and improve their quality of life.

People's needs and wishes were met by staff who knew them well and enjoyed working with them. We saw and were told of many examples of staff going 'above and beyond' to help and support people they cared for.

Appropriate recruitment checks took place before staff started work and there were enough staff available to meet people's care and support needs. People were involved in staff recruitment.

Staff received comprehensive training to enable them to carry out their roles effectively. Staff were encouraged to pursue professional development goals.

Staff were happy working for the service and felt supported by the registered manager and colleagues. We were told, ''There's good teamwork, I get on with everyone, they've all been really nice.''

Care records contained extensive, clear information covering all aspects of people's individualised care and support. Risk assessments were comprehensive and emergency evacuation plans were produced in a format that ensured people using the service could understand how to keep safe in a crisis situation.

Information about people was written in a respectful and personalised way and people were involved in the recording of their daily notes which ensured transparent and collaborative results.

People and their relatives were always involved in the planning and delivery of their care, and were regularly asked for feedback which was acted upon when appropriate.

People were supported in making healthy lifestyle choices for themselves and to maintain good health. Staff at the service worked collaboratively with healthcare professionals to ensure good outcomes for people.

The service had established links in the local community and had worked in partnership with key organisations including local authorities and other agencies that provided social care services to improve people's opportunities and experiences.

The service had an open approach to feedback and encouraged people and staff to be actively involved in service development. There were robust systems in place to monitor and improve the quality of the service. When there were problems, the provider dealt with them properly and quickly, working with all those involved to reduce the likelihood of recurrence.

Rating at last inspection: The service was rated Good overall at the last inspection (28 January 2017)

Why we inspected: The inspection was brought forward due to information of concern.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor the service through the information we receive until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.

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