Archived: Upward Care Limited

We spoke with the registered manager and three members of staff.

As part of the inspection, we met with five people who used the service by visiting them in their supported living homes. We talked with two family members of people who used the service and one professional who knew the service well.

One person who used the service told us: 'I like living here. I get on with the staff'.

We found that people's views and experiences were taken into account in the way the service was provided and delivered in relation to their care.

We found that the care and welfare needs of people who used the service were being met.

We saw that appropriate arrangements were in place to manage people's medicines.

We found that there were processes in place to ensure staff were suitably trained and supported.

We found that the provider did not have an effective system to consistently assess and monitor the quality of service that people received. We found that some improvement was needed.

At the last inspection we found that correct procedures had been followed in the recruitment of staff to Upward Care Limited. We found, however that there was insufficient evidence to demonstrate that staff had the skills and competence levels necessary for the work to be performed and to fulfil their caring roles safely and effectively.

At the last inspection we found that the service had some systems in place to monitor and evaluate the service. However the quality monitoring systems they had did not provide assurance that people would be protected from risk.

We completed an unannounced responsive review to look at how things had improved since the last inspection. This meant that the provider and the staff did not know we were coming.

During our visit we spoke with the registered manager about changes and improvements that had been made at the service.

Having spoken with the registered manager and reviewed evidence provided we found that the provider was compliant in both outcomes.

Due to the nature of the needs of the six individuals supported by Upward Care Limited, we were unable to obtain their direct opinions. We used other methods to better understand their views to include conversations with relatives and professionals who knew them well.

The relatives of people using the service told us they were generally happy with the service they received.

One relative told us, 'I am very happy with the service. I have seen a positive difference in [my relative] since they have been supported by the staff'.

Staff we spoke with told us they received appropriate training to undertake their work competently and received appropriate support from the management team.

One staff member told us, 'I have no complaints about working here. I have been impressed with how things are'.

We looked at five key outcomes to establish whether people were involved in the service they received; whether care was provided appropriately; whether the service could ensure people's safety; whether correct procedures had been followed in the recruitment of staff and whether there was a system for ensuring ongoing quality assurance.

We found that Upward Care Limited was compliant in three key outcomes and non-compliant with respect to staff requirements and quality assurance systems.