Creative Support - Doncaster Personalised Services

Updated 28 February 2020

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

This inspection was completed by one inspector.

Service and service type

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

The service had managers registered with the Care Quality Commission. 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.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We looked at all the information we had received from and about the service. We sought feedback from professionals who commission the service on behalf of people. 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. This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 10 people who used the service about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 10 members of staff including the registered managers, members of the care and support team and the area manager. We reviewed a range of records. This included 12 people's care records. We looked at staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. After the site visit we telephoned and spoke with two health and social care professionals who regularly work with the service. We looked at training data and quality assurance records.

Updated 28 February 2020

About the service

Creative Support – Doncaster personalised services is a supported living service offering care and support to people. Accommodation is situated throughout Doncaster. The service supports people with a learning disability, autism and mental health needs. Three registered managers oversee and are responsible for their own specific geographical area. An area manager has oversight of all services. 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. Seventy seven people were being supported with personal care at the time of our inspection.

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 using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.

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

People were encouraged to live as full a life as possible and supported to achieve the best possible outcomes. Staff had formed positive relationships with the people they supported and looked for ways to make them feel valued. People were genuinely encouraged to express their goals and wishes, and the service looked for ways to make these happen. Staff knew people exceptionally well and used this knowledge to support them to achieve their goals. Staff were considerate of people's feeling at all times and treated people with the utmost respect and dignity.

People were exceptionally safe using the service. There were established relationships of trust and support between staff which enabled people to stay safe. People were empowered to make decisions about their safety, which helped avoid unnecessary restrictions being placed on people and maximised their independence. Staff were very sensitive to the vulnerabilities of people living in the community. They acted proactively when concerns were identified and supported people to protect themselves. A strong sense of security and safety had been created for people by the use of technology and personal awareness. People were supported by a creative and inclusive approach which helped them understand potential risks and make decisions.

People received highly effective care and support from a consistent staff team who knew them well and were well trained. People's rights to make their own decisions were protected. Staff worked well together for the benefit of people and were completely focused on meeting the personal, health and social care needs of people living at the service. People were supported by staff who understood the importance of safe medicine administration. This included ensuring people had regular reviews of their medicines. 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. When people were unable to make decisions about their care and support, the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (2005) were followed. There was evidence the service went the extra mile to ensure people were supported to make decisions.

The service clearly demonstrated how it consistently met the characteristics of providing outstanding care. People were at the heart of the service and the registered managers and staff were fully committed to providing high-quality person-centred care. Staff were clearly committed and compassionate, striving to provide outstanding care, with excellent outcomes at all times. People were treated with exceptional kindness, dignity and respect and received their care and support from a highly motivated and dedicated staff team.

Comprehensive plans of care had been developed and staff knew the people they were supporting extremely well. Staff worked hard to promote people's right to make their own decisions about their care where possible and respected the choices they made. People's consent was always obtained. People's needs were assessed holistically across a wide range of areas. This included needs in relation to people's protected characteristics such as gender and sexuality. People were supported by staff who had training and support to understand their needs. People were supported to plan and cook their meals, information was given to people on healthy eating. People's wishes at the end of their life were sought and followed and people received excellent end of life care. People had access to a wide range of personalised and group activities and were supported to have a say in all aspects of how the service was delivered.

People benefitted from a service that had dedicated leaders and staff whose experience was used to support people to lead full and meaningful lives. The values of the provider were consistently demonstrated by staff in their interactions with people and with each other. People's views were sought and acted upon. The provider worked with other organisations to enhance its service delivery. The management team analysed survey results with an openness and commitment to continuously improve. Extensive service auditing was clearly directed at reviewing any lessons learnt to maximise people's safety and quality of life.

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

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 1 February 2019 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection as the service had yet to be rated since it registered with the CQC.

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.