18 September 2015
During a routine inspection
This inspection took place on 18 September 2015 and was unannounced. This service was last inspected in August 2013 and at that time, was meeting all the essential standards looked at during that inspection.
Social Care Solutions Ltd (South Bedfordshire Office) provides an outreach and supported living service to people who have a range of needs including learning disabilities, autistic spectrum disorders and physical disabilities. At the time of this inspection 29 people were using the service, some of whom lived in supported living accommodation and others who lived in their own homes in the community.
Although there was a manager in place, they were not registered with the Care Quality Commission yet . However,they were in the process of making their application. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.
The service had safeguards in place to protect people from the risk of harm. People’s support plans and risk assessments were detailed, person-centred and reflective of their changing needs. Medicines were managed and administered safely and people were supported to manage their own medicines if they wished to and where this was assessed as safe .
Staff received training which was relevant to their role and received regular supervision and support. Interactions between people and staff were positive and friendly and staff were knowledgeable about the people they supported. Staff had a good understanding of the Mental Capacity Act 2008 (MCA) and associated regulations.
People had enough to eat and drink. People did their own meal planning, shopping and cooking with support from staff.
People were given opportunities to contribute to their care and support and were included in reviews and meetings. People had a variety of interests and hobbies which they were supported to maintain. People’s daily living skills and independence were encouraged and they were treated with dignity and respect by staff. There were enough staff with the right skills and knowledge to meet people’s needs.
The service had robust quality assurance systems in place and held regular audits to identify any areas that required improvement. There was a complaints policy which detailed how people could make a complaint if required.