Care service description

HF Trust - Kent DCA is a domiciliary care service registered to provide personal care. The service provided care and support to 46 people with a learning disability living in ‘supported living’ settings, so that they can live in their own home as independently as possible.

People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support.

The office is based in Lympne, on a large site with 12 flats in one building, one four bedroom house, a bungalow and a residential service. At this inspection we did not inspect the residential service. Some people using the domiciliary care service lived away from the main site in flats and shared housing. Support for people ranged from a few hours each week for the provision of activities, to twenty four hour support for all aspects of personal care and daily living.

The service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.

At the last inspection, the service was rated ‘Good.’ At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of ‘Good’ and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

Why the service is rated Good

The service was divided into three clusters. Each cluster had a service manager. At the last inspection one service manager was registered with CQC. At this inspection all three service managers were registered with CQC. 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.

Staff understood their responsibilities in keeping people safe and reporting any suspicion of abuse. Staff knew what the reporting procedures were and told us that they were confident their concerns would be listened to. The registered managers knew how and when they should escalate concerns to the local authorities safeguarding. Individual risks to people had been assessed and plans to reduce risk were personalised, clear and comprehensive. Staff and people understood the steps they needed to take to minimise risks whilst maintaining independence. Assessments were undertaken with people before they moved in to the service to make sure their needs could be met. When the service could no longer meet the needs of the service they were supported to move to another service that could meet their needs.

The registered managers involved people in planning their support. People’s needs had been assessed and treatment delivered in line with current legislation. Support plans were person centred and included people's life story. Plans explained what lifestyle choices people had made. People had access to their plans. There was information about people’s relatives and friends and how people wanted to maintain relationships. Support plans told staff what people could do independently and what support they needed. Staff assessed and treated people as individuals. Staff had received training and understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 20015 (MCA). People were supported to make their own choices and decisions.

Medicines were managed safely. Staff were aware of the policies and procedures for the management of medicines and had undertaken appropriate training. Regular audits were under

The inspection took place on 06, 07 and 08 January 2016 and was announced with 48 hours’ notice. This was our first inspection of this service since it’s registration in April 2013.

HF Trust - Kent DCA is a domiciliary care agency registered to provide personal care. The agency

office is based in Lympne, on a large site with 12 flats in one large building, one four bedroom house, a residential service and day activity services. The service is divided into three clusters, providing support to adults living in shared living accommodations in the Shepway District of Kent. Support can range from a few hours each week based around provision of activities, to twenty four hour support for all aspects of personal care and daily living. At the time of this inspection 40 people were supported by the agency. Each of the shared living clusters had a service manager. One service manager is a registered manager who is registered with CQC.

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 and associated regulations about how the service is run. The two other service managers had applied to be registered with the CQC, at the time of our inspection their applications were being processed. One manager is responsible for 12 flats in one building, these flats comprise of three bedrooms, two bedrooms and one bedroom flats for individuals, each flat has its own bathroom and kitchen facilities. Another manager is responsible for three shared houses and the manager for cluster three is responsible for three shared houses.

People supported and their representatives made positive comments about HF Trust - Kent DCA. People said “I am happy” and “I like it a lot, I like the staff.” People who we were unable to verbally communicate with were able to communicate with their key workers and had a good rapport with them. One relative commented, “We have peace of mind now, It is the best care he has ever had.”

Systems were in place to make sure people received their medicines safely. Staff recruitment procedures were thorough and ensured people’s safety was promoted. Staff were provided with relevant induction and training to make sure they had the right skills and knowledge for their role.

Risks associated with people’s care and support had been assessed. The guidance in place for staff was clear to ensure people remained safe and were supported to be as independent as possible and participate in household tasks and access the community safely. The service had safeguarding procedures in place and staff had received training in these. Staff demonstrated an understanding of what constituted abuse and how to report any concerns in order to keep people safe.

Staff understood their role and what was expected of them. They were happy in their work, motivated and proud to work at the service. Staff were confident in the way the service was managed. The service followed the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) Code of practice and the principles of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). This helped to protect the rights of people who may not be able to make important decisions themselves.

The support provided was person centred and flexible to suit the needs of the person supported. People were involved in the planning of their care and support. Care plans contained information about people’s wishes and preferences and where appropriate, pictures and photographs to make them more meaningful. They detailed people’s skills in relation to tasks and what help they required from staff, in order that their independence was maintained or developed. People had regular reviews of their care and support where they were able to discuss any concerns or aspirations.

People supported and a relative spoken with said they could spe