Meridian Health and Social Care - Leeds

At the time of the assessment, 90 people were receiving support with personal care. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) only inspects services where personal care is provided this includes assistance with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where applicable, any wider social care provided is also considered.

The service had a newly appointed manager who was in the process of registering with the Care Quality Commission. This means that, once registered, both the provider and the manager will share legal responsibility for the management of the service, including the quality and safety of the care provided.

Systems were established to support the delivery of care, including clear care planning and appropriate risk management processes. Care plans were subject to regular review to ensure they reflected people’s current needs. Staff demonstrated a sound understanding of safeguarding and their responsibilities to protect people from abuse and avoidable harm.

Recruitment processes were in place to support the safe appointment of staff, and infection prevention and control measures were effectively implemented. Training arrangements and competency checks supported staff in delivering care, with the provider identifying the need to further strengthen face-to-face training provision.

Whilst incidents, complaints and safeguarding concerns were recorded and acted on, there was limited evidence to demonstrate how this information was consistently reviewed and lessons learnt. After the inspection the manager sent through some examples of these.

Governance systems were in place; however, these were not consistently effective in providing robust oversight, monitoring performance or driving continuous improvement. The newly appointed manager had recognised these areas for development and had begun implementing improvements to strengthen governance processes and enhance oversight.