Updated 9 March 2023
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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.
Inspection team
The inspection was carried out by 1 inspector.
Service and service type
This service provides care and support to people living in 9 ‘supported living’ settings, so that they can live as independently as possible. People’s care and housing needs 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.
Registered Manager
This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.
At the time of our inspection the manager had begun the process of applying to be registered manager. Following our visit, they successfully completed the process to become the registered manager.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 2 working days notice of the inspection. This was because the service is provided across several locations and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.
Inspection activity started on 10 January 2023 when we visited the office and ended on 23 January 2023 when we gave feedback to the provider. We visited people in their homes on 11, 13 and 16 January 2023, we had video meetings with people on 17 and 20 January 2023.
What we did before the inspection
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 reviewed the information we received from and about the service. We used all this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We met with 8 people in their homes. We met with the registered manager and senior manager at the office and reviewed a range of governance records. We met with 7 members of staff. We looked at 7 people’s care plans and medicine administration records and 4 staff recruitment files.
Following our visits, we continued to review these records along with a range of documents relating to staffing, staff training, policies, audits and governance. We spoke with 2 people’s relatives and 2 professionals who knew the service.