10 January 2014
During a routine inspection
We spoke with seven people, two relatives, staff and other people connected to the service. Everyone praised the staff and the service provided. One person said, 'I have lots of friends here.' A relative told us, 'Staff have supported me and continue to do so.'
We found records to show how people's needs had been assessed before they started to use the service. We then found care plans and associated risk assessments were completed once the person started to use the service. People were supported to remain as independent as possible.
People were supported by staff to attend health appointments and the service worked with others to provide for example, the memory caf'. One carer using the caf' who did not access the service told us, 'Staff are very professional with the people they looked after.'
We saw that there was enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff to meet people's needs.
Supervision and appraisal of staff performance had not been carried out in line with company policy and this meant that staff did not receive appropriate professional development.
We found that systems were in place to monitor the service that people received, including people surveys and management audits.
We found that staff were using out of date policies and procedures, even though current electronic versions were available.