Flourish Healthcare and Support Limited

At the time of the assessment 8 people were using the service, 6 of which were receiving the regulated activity of personal care. Not everyone who uses a supported living service receives personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care.

The service is also registered as a domiciliary care service but at the time of our assessment was not providing this type of support. We therefore did not assess this part of their registration.

This is the first assessment for this provider under its new registration. We inspected the service to provide a rating. At this assessment we reviewed all 5 key questions and rated the provider overall as good.

We assessed the service against ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ guidance to make judgements about whether the provider guaranteed people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. This provider was able overall to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of ‘Right support, right care, right culture’.

The provider had systems in place to safeguard people from the risk of abuse. Staff demonstrated a good understanding of safeguarding procedures and were confident in recognising, responding to, and reporting concerns. While the provider was reporting notifiable incidents to partner agencies and CQC, they were not fully aware of all incidents that required reporting and as a result some had not been submitted. The registered manager took prompt action to address this issue.

Overall medicines were managed safely. Although we found no evidence of harm to people, the management of liquid medicines, creams and homely remedies required review. Immediate action was taken by the registered manager to address issues identified and revised systems implemented.

The provider made sure there were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff, who were recruited safely and received effective support, supervision and development. The majority of staff reported feeling well supported, treated fairly and enjoyed working at the service. However, a small number of staff had been affected by recent events at the service. The provider remained committed to promoting a fair and inclusive culture and reassuring staff of this, while maintaining appropriate confidentiality regarding actions taken.

Individual apartments were clean, tidy and well maintained with regular health and safety checks undertaken. Staff received training related to fire safety, however not all staff had completed a fire drill. This was discussed with the provider who confirmed that immediate action would be taken to ensure all staff completed a fire drill.

Staff knew people well and supported them with kindness and respect.

People’s needs were assessed with involvement of the person, their relatives and other professionals to ease transition into the service. Adjustments to the environment were made where necessary to improve accessibility or meet individual specific needs.

People and their relatives were involved in creating support plans, these were clearly documented and reviewed when required. Staff understood the importance of gaining consent before providing care, and care records showed that the service worked in line with the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (2005).

Risks associated with people’s care had been identified and assessments were in place to minimise risks occurring.

The provider worked in partnership with a variety of health professionals to ensure people received the right care and support.

Governance systems were in place to oversee and monitor the quality of care provided.