Brothers of Charity Services Merseyside Domiciliary Care

Updated 9 November 2019

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.

Service and service type

This service provides care and support to people living in their own homes, so that they can live as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support.

The service had a manager registered with the CQC. 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.

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because we needed to be sure the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection and we wanted to be sure there would be people available to speak with us.

Inspection activity started on 04 September 2019 and ended on 27 September 2019. We visited the office location on 04 and 05 September 2019.

What we did before the inspection

Before the inspection, we looked at the information we held about the service. This information included statutory notifications the provider had sent to CQC. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send us by law.

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 also contacted local authority commissioners and asked them for their views about the service. This information helps support our inspections. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

During the inspection, we visited the registered office and spoke with the registered manager and a member of the senior management team. We also attended two meetings for people who used the service during which time we spoke with a total of 30 people who used the service and eight staff.

We visited 11 people in their homes and spoke with 10 members of staff during the visits. We also spoke on the telephone with five people’s family members about their experience of the service.

We looked at 10 people’s care records and a selection of medication and medication administration (MARs). We looked at other records including quality monitoring records, recruitment and training records and other records relating to the management of the service.

Updated 9 November 2019

About the service

Brothers of Charity Services Merseyside Domiciliary Care is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own homes and provides care and support to people living in supported living settings, so that they can live as independently as possible.

The service provides support to adults living with a learning disability or an autistic spectrum disorder.

At the time of the inspection 200 people were using the service. Not everyone who used the service received personal care. The Care Quality Commission (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’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.

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 received planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that was appropriate and inclusive for them.

The outcomes for people using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support by promoting choice and control, independence and inclusion. People's support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible for them to gain new skills and become more independent.

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

The service approach to planning and delivering care and support to people was extremely person centred. People were fully involved in the development of their care plans and without exception people were consistently supported and encouraged to plan and achieve their goals and aspirations. The service was very responsive to people’s needs, wishes and preferences which they agreed to, and this was evidenced in excellent outcomes for people. People’s quality of life had improved significantly, and they developed in their self-confidence independence and their self-esteem.

People were protected from the risk of abuse and harm. People were supported to take positive risks as part of an independent lifestyle. The recruitment of staff was safe, and people were involved in the recruitment process. People supported by the right amount of suitably skilled and experienced staff. Medicines were used safely, and people were supported to be as independent as possible with managing their own medicines. Accidents and incidents were reported in an open and transparent way and lessons were learnt to help reduce further occurrences.

People's needs had been thoroughly assessed and detailed support plans were developed with clear guidance for staff on how to meet people’s need and choices. Staff received the training and support they needed to meet people’s needs and carry out their role effectively. People received good support with their dietary and healthcare needs and they were supported to lead active and healthy lifestyles.

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.

People were treated with kindness and respect and their independence was encouraged and promoted. People’s right to privacy was respected, they told us staff were respectful of their homes. People were given many opportunities to express their views and opinions and they felt listened to.

The leadership of the service promoted a positive culture that was person-centred and inclusive. People were supported to achieve their goals and aspirations with positive outcomes. The registered manager was supportive and approachable and led by example. The service worked well with other professionals and organisations in meeting people's needs. Effective systems were in place to check on the quality and safety of the service and for making improvements.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was Good (published 01 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 re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.