SeeAbility - Kent Supported Living

Updated 1 July 2022

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.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

One Inspector carried out the inspection.

Service and service type

SeeAbility - Kent Supported Living provides care and support to two people living in 'supported living' settings, so 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 required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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.

At the time of our inspection there was no registered manager in post. A new manager had started employment and had started the process of registering with the CQC. This meant that the provider was legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 11 May 2022 and ended on 26 May 2022. We visited the location’s office on 11 May 2022.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service. The provider was not asked to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. A PIR is information providers send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection

During the inspection

We spoke with the manager, deputy manager and a staff member who provided people with positive behaviour support. We reviewed a range of records. This included people's care plans, medicines records, accidents and incidences and daily care records. We looked at recruitment checks and complaints. A variety of records relating to the management of the service. Some policies and procedures were also reviewed.

After the inspection

We spoke with two relatives of the people who used the service about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with four support staff. We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at care plans, positive behaviour support plans, daily records, staff meeting minutes and an action plan for the development of the service.

Updated 1 July 2022

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

About the service

SeeAbility - Kent Supported Living is a supported living service. At the time of the inspection two people were receiving the regulated activity of personal care. The service supported people with a learning disability and autistic people. Staff provided each person with support for life skills and with their individual health and wellbeing needs. This included specific communication requirements and support with emotional, physical and sensory needs.

Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do, we also consider any wider social care provided.

People lived in their own separate homes and had their own tenancy agreement. Staff provided one to one support and were available 24 hours a day.

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

Since the service registered with the Care Quality Commission in January 2021 there had been a lot of staff changes. The registered manager had left and so had a lot of the original support staff. The manager and some of the staff team were new to the service. Relatives and staff told us, this had been an unsettling time for people and people were now getting to know the new staff. Relatives and staff did say improvements were being made and they hoped communication, support and guidance would continue to develop. They felt confident that the new manager would do this. The new manager had identified the shortfalls and plans were in place to address these shortfalls.

Right Support

Staff supported people to have choice, control and independence. Staff focused on people’s strengths. They developed and promoted what people could do and supported them to develop new skills, so they had a fulfilling and meaningful everyday life.

Staff supported people to take their medicines as prescribed by their doctors. Staff supported people to play an active role in maintaining their own health and wellbeing.

Right Care

Care was person-centred and promoted people's dignity, privacy and human rights. People received kind and compassionate care. Staff understood and responded to their individual needs. People could communicate with staff and understand information given to them because staff supported them consistently and understood their individual communication needs.

Staff understood how to protect people from poor care and abuse. The service worked with other agencies to do so. Staff had training on how to recognise and report abuse and they knew how to apply it.

People's care, treatment and support plans reflected their range of needs and this promoted their wellbeing and enjoyment of life. Some relatives did say they would like their ‘loved one’ to be involved in more meaningful activities.

Staff and people cooperated to assess risks people might face. Where appropriate, staff encouraged and enabled people to take positive risks.

Right culture

Ethos, values, attitudes and behaviours of the manager and staff we spoke with ensured people using services lead confident, inclusive and empowered lives. Staff and the management team ensured that people were at the centre of the delivery of care. People were treated as individuals whose life and experiences were considered and factored into care planning.

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

Rating

This service was registered with us on 21 January 2021 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

We undertook this inspection to assess that the service is applying the principles of right support, right care and right culture.

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all supported living inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

Follow up

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