Future Directions CIC

Updated 11 January 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 an inspector, an assistant inspector and an Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

This service is a supported living service. It provides care and support to people living in supported living settings, so that they can live as independently as possible. The service is based in Oldham, but provides support to people living in supported tenancies across the North, including Greater Manchester and East Lancashire. 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.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service three days’ notice of our inspection. This was to ensure there would be people available in the supported living tenancies to speak with us. Inspection activity started on 14 October 2019 and ended on 18 October 2019. We visited the service office 14 October 2019 and visited people in the supported living tenancies on 17 October 2019. We provided inspection feedback on 18 October 2019.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we held about the service. This included the previous inspection reports and notifications. Notifications contain information about events the manager must tell us about. For example, safeguarding concerns, serious injuries and deaths, that have occurred at the service. 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. We used all of this information to plan our inspection. We gathered feedback from organisations that commissioned the service.

During the inspection

We visited the service office and reviewed a range of records. These included three staff recruitment files and supervision and training records. We reviewed a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies, audits and minutes of meetings.

We visited eight supported living tenancies where we looked at people’s care plans and medicines records. We also looked at health and safety checks.

We spoke with 12 people who used the service, although these were not all full conversations. We spoke on the telephone with 19 relatives. We talked to several of the senior managers, including the managing director, the director of operations (registered manager), the assistant director of operations and the learning and development manager. We spoke with nine support staff.

Updated 11 January 2020

About the service

Future Directions CIC provides care and support to people who live in supported tenancies. People live together in tenancies with a small number of other people. It supports people with a wide range of needs, including people with a learning disability, mental health needs, autism, dementia and acquired brain injury. At the time of our inspection the service supported 208 people, of whom 170 were supported with a regulated activity.

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

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 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.

Without exception everyone we spoke with was full of praise for the service and its staff. The service was driven by its five values: ‘put people first, be transparent, go the extra mile, be creative, be adaptable’. Through our observations and discussions with people and staff we saw that the service truly put these values into action.

People were treated with dignity and respect in a way that valued them as individuals. People were helped to set goals and staff supported them to achieve their dreams and aspirations and lead full and meaningful lives. People were helped to be as independent as they could be.

Staff worked with people to put together care plans that were person centred and achieved their desired outcomes. People benefited from support from small, consistent staff teams.

People were kept safe through robust safeguarding strategies. Staff were well-trained and received regular supervision to monitor their progress and ensure their work reflected the values of the organisation.

Staff were highly motivated and proud to work for an organisation which valued and praised its staff. There was a strong and knowledgeable management team who led by example and who were committed to continually monitoring and developing the service. The management team were passionate about the service. The service was forward thinking and innovative and worked creatively with outside organisations to promote the well-being of people with learning disabilities, autism, mental health needs, dementia and an acquired brain injury.

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

Rating at last inspection

The rating at the last inspection of this service was good (report published 14 March 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

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