Leaf Care Services - Norwich West and South Norfolk

Staff received all mandatory training and some other training, but there was a lack of oversight to ensure all staff had received the specific training to meet all the needs of people they cared for. People did not always feel their concerns were listened to, but felt if they had serious concern this would be addressed. They felt they were supported safely. Risk assessments were in place to help ensure people’s care needs were meet and minimised any risks they faced. This included for medication. Their needs were identified at the start of the care being provided and reviewed regularly afterwards. There were enough staff to meet care calls. Measures were put in place by the registered manager to try to address the identified shortfalls during the assessment.

People and relatives were not all satisfied with the consistency of the care call times which could vary. They said they had raised this informally via reviews and feedback questionnaire, but they did not always receive a response. People received care which was person centred to their needs. Referrals were submitted to ensure people received the care they required as their needs changed. Staff had developed good working relationships with health care professionals to ensure people received the care they required.

The governance system did not give complete oversight to identify informal complaints and concerns raised verbally and via feedback systems. This has led to some people and relatives feeling they had not been listened to, themes not being identified and addressed to resolve concerns. This included areas such things as care call times, ensuring all staff had the required training to meet people’s needs and identifying inconsistencies in care records. This had resulted in a breach of good governance and an action plan request. The Nominated individual (NI) and registered manager had a shared vision and strategy for the service and worked with the Commissioners to ensure it matched their needs. The management team had recently been expanded to support the registered manager, who kept themselves updated via networking and training. Providers and health care professional praised the staff and management team for the professional, efficient and caring working relationships they had developed with them to ensure people received the personalised care they required. The governance system had recently changed and the NI and registered manager made further changes to ensure the issues we identified were being addressed.