About the service: This service provides care to people living in specialist ‘extra care’ housing and night-time care to people in their own homes. Extra care housing is purpose-built or adapted single household accommodation in a shared site or building. The accommodation is rented and is the occupant’s own home. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for extra care housing; this inspection looked at people’s personal care service.The service provided personal care to 66 people at the time of the inspection.
The care is provided by two teams of staff. One team deliver day-time care to people living in the extra care housing facility between 7.30am and 9.30pm and the Out of Hours team, delivered night-time care to people living in their own homes and people living in the extra care housing where needed.
People’s experience of using this service:
People told us they felt safe and staff knew what to do if they thought someone was at risk. People were involved in assessing and evaluating risks to their health and welfare. Safe recruitment processes were in place to ensure staff were suitable to work with vulnerable people. Systems were in place to make sure there were enough staff available to meet people’s needs. Infection prevention and control (IPC) systems were in place to reduce people’s risk of infection, including COVID-19. Medicines were managed safely.
People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and promoted independence. People were involved in developing and reviewing their care plans.
Staff received induction training and followed a programme of continuous learning. Staff said they had been supported to complete alternative forms of training during the pandemic and had received support through regular supervision sessions with their team leaders. People’s needs were assessed, and care and support were regularly reviewed.
Feedback we received from people who used the service and their relatives was complimentary about all staff. Staff involved people in decisions about their care and consulted people regarding what they wanted.
Systems were in place to make sure the service complied with the Accessible Information Standards.
People’s care records documented the level of care and support required. They were up to date and were regularly reviewed. All concerns were responded to appropriately.
People said staff had been supportive in helping them to keep in touch with family and friends during the pandemic. People said staff made time to chat with them. One said they had “Gone the extra mile” to support them.
People and their relatives spoke highly of the management of the service. Systems were in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service. People were provided with the opportunity to feedback on the service they received, and any suggestions for improvement were welcomed. The service worked well in partnership with others to ensure the best outcomes for people.
Rating at last inspection: The last rating for this service was Good (published 11 April 2019).
Why we inspected:
We undertook this inspection as part of a random selection of services rated Good and Outstanding to test the reliability of our new monitoring approach.
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 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