Wansbeck Supported Living Service

Updated 6 June 2024

We carried out our on-site assessment on 26 and 27 June 2024, off site assessment activity started on 25 June 2024 and ended on 2 July 2024. We looked at 109 evidence categories. The service performed well against the majority of statements we looked at. There were areas for improvement in evidence categories linked to governance and oversight of medication, and reviews of risk assessment information. The registered manager was responsive to our feedback. The service has previously been in breach of regulations 12 (safe care and treatment), 17 (good governance) and 18 (staffing). The provider and registered manager had made a range of improvements and the service was no longer in breach of these regulations. 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. The registered manager was aware of this guidance and ensure people experienced a good quality of life and were treated with dignity, respect and support to live their lives how they wanted. Staffing levels were appropriate and the staff team was a positive blend of experienced and newer staff. Safeguarding training, policies and procedures and policies were effective and up to date. Risks were well understood by staff but sometimes documentation needed to be more comprehensive in setting out how to support people to minimize the risks they faced. The registered manager took immediate action to make improvements. We were assured that they and staff had a strong understanding of how to manage risk.

Updated 6 June 2024

We spoke with 3 people who used the service, 5 relatives, one advocate and a range of visiting professionals. People enjoyed their independence, alongside the opportunity to build and maintain friendships. The service ensured people were empowered to make their own choices and to be at the centre of their care planning. People who used the service described staff positively and interacted with them warmly. They had clearly developed mutually respectful relationships that allowed for banter and affection. One said, “The staff are all lovely, they are great. I love living here. The staff have been so supportive. They care a lot.” One relative said, “[Person’s] quality of life is brilliant – they always at the bingo, always winning. They go shopping and on holiday. They are as independent as they can be and they love using their own back garden whenever they want to.” People felt safe and that the continuity of staff made a difference. One relative said, “I think they are safe and I know they feel safe. They have carers that come in and they’re usually the ones that [person] knows. They try and keep the same carers as much as they possibly can.” Another said, “Yes I feel [Person] is safe. Obviously I pick up a lot when I visit them. I can tell they are happy and safe because of what’s in place. It’s a separate bungalow with carers and I think this makes them feel more secure.” One person told us how they enjoyed a range of regular outings of their choice and other activities, alongside their regular meetings with friends they had made. Another had a range of projects on the go including contributing to broader NHS work on producing easy read guidance. People, relatives and staff felt they could speak up if they had any concerns. Where they had done so, the registered manager took prompt, effective action. The registered manager was responsive to feedback about reviewing the complaints process to ensure even greater accountability.