Ashdown Care

Updated 26 February 2020

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.

This service provides care and support to people living in ‘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. This service is also a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses.

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

Inspection activity started on 15 January 2020 and ended on 16 January 2020. We informed the provider that we had started the inspection on 15 January 2020 and requested information relating to good governance. We informed them of when the site visit would take place. We visited the office location on 16 January 2020.

What we did before inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service. We sought feedback from the local authority professionals who work with the service and Healthwatch. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England.

We used the information the provider 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 or have made since the last inspection. This information helps support our inspections.

We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with one person who used the service about their experience of the care provided. We met or contacted by telephone eight members of staff including the registered manager, area manager, deputy managers, care workers and the Nominated Individual, who is the provider representative. We received feedback from two health and social care professionals who worked alongside the service.

We reviewed a range of records. This included two people’s care records, risk assessments and medication records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. We reviewed a variety of records related to the management and quality assurance of the service.

After the inspection

We spoke with three members of staff and a relative. We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records. We received feedback from one professional who worked alongside the service.

Updated 26 February 2020

About the service.

Head Office is a domiciliary care and supported living service based in Newcastle. The service provides personal care and support to people living in their own homes, who have a learning disability and/or autism. At the time of our inspection there were 4 people who received care from the service.

The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.

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

People received person centred services that put them at the heart of everything. People were supported by kind and compassionate staff who knew them well. Staff and management told us how important it was to ensure people were at the centre of their care and support. For example, one member of staff told us “People get involved in choosing what they want to do each day. We have regular meetings to talk about what they want to do. We are talking with them all the time to make sure we are providing the right care.”

People were protected from the risks of potential harm or abuse. Risks to people’s safety and well-being were assessed and plans put in place to encourage positive risk taking. Where people may display behaviour that could be seen as challenging, positive behaviour support plans guided staff on how to support people to manage this safely.

People’s medicines were administered safely and in accordance with the prescribing instructions. People had access to appropriate health care professionals to support them to maintain their emotional and physical wellbeing.

People received care and support from staff who had received appropriate training. Staff spoke positively about the training they received and its value. They said they had access to regular refresher training to ensure they were up to date with good practice.

The provider followed safe recruitment practices. People were actively involved in recruiting and choosing their own staff. There were sufficient staff to meet people’s needs safely. Staffing was organised flexibly to support people to be able to access their chosen activities.

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.

The service applied the principles and values of Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These ensure that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes that include control, choice and independence.

The service supported people to live as independently as possible in ordinary housing in the community. In line with The Real Tenancy Test and Reach standards people had separate tenancy agreements and care contracts. These support people to have control of where and who they live with. People's support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible for them to gain new skills and become more independent.

Quality assurance systems were in place to monitor the quality of service being delivered. Learning from incidents and accidents had been embedded in the service to drive improvements for people.

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

This service was registered with us on 10/10/2017 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection of a new service.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about Head Office until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.