Egalite Care

Updated 10 September 2019

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

This inspection was carried out by one inspector and an Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

This service is a domiciliary care agency and supported living provider. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats. They also provide care and support to people living in seven 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 used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support.

The service had a manager 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

We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that someone would be in the office to support the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

We used information the provider sent us in the Provider Information Return (PIR). Providers are required to send us key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We reviewed notifications sent to CQC about important events at the service and information sent to us from other stakeholders for example the local authority and members of the public.

What we did during the inspection

We spoke with 13 people who used the service and seven of their relatives, the registered manager, the operations manager, the training manager, the clinical manager and seven members of support staff. We visited three supported living services, spoke with six people and observed staff interactions with them. We pathway tracked the care of three people. Pathway tracking is where we check that the care detailed in individual plans matches the experience of the person receiving care. We completed observations in communal areas in people’s homes. Where people were unable to answer direct questions, we observed their engagement in daily tasks. We reviewed records including accident and incident logs, quality assurance records, compliments and complaints, policies and procedures and three staff recruitment records.

What we did after the inspection

We spoke with four health and social care professionals to gain their views of the service people received and have incorporated this feedback into this report.

Updated 10 September 2019

About the service

Egalité Care Limited provides care and support to people living in their own home, supported living accommodation or their family home. People using the service include people living with a learning disability and/or physical disabilities. At the time of our inspection, there were 60 people being supported by the service.

There were seven supported living homes across coastal West Sussex providing support for 33 people. There were no external signs, intercom, cameras, industrial bins or anything else were not in use, to indicate it was a supported living home. Staff were also discouraged from wearing anything that suggested they were care staff when coming and going with people. This meant people were not identified as receiving care and their privacy respected.

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 exceptionally well 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

Following the last inspection, the registered manager, management team and staff had worked continuously to provide people with outstanding care and support. They understood that maintaining this high level of care required dedication and commitment, and we saw this across the whole staff team. Staff were focussed on continually developing areas of the service with person centred support at the centre of these improvements. Staff were dedicated to supporting people to improve their independence, access to activities that met their interests and being active in the local community. The management team continued to develop their extensive knowledge of supporting people living with a learning disability and upskilling their staff team. This meant that people received high-quality care from staff who truly understood their needs.

The management and leadership of the service were exceptional. The registered manager and management team had an excellent understanding of the provision of care and support for people living with a learning disability. They had actively sought education opportunities for themselves and their staff to build on their detailed knowledge following the last inspection. This meant people had access to the highest quality care from managers and staff that had an exceptional knowledge of their needs. A health and social care professional told us, “I would use Egalité as an example of what small providers can deliver in terms of high-quality support. Egalité has managers that are confident, proactive and understand learning disability.”

The registered manager was committed to continuous learning and fostered a supportive and enabling culture for both people and staff. People, their relatives and staff were highly complimentary of the management of the service. A relative told us, “We can’t fault them at all, they manage everything well and my loved one is happy and content.”

People received a truly person-centred service which promoted excellent outcomes for them which included supporting their independence and to have control over their lives. Following the last inspection, the management team focussed on further developing people’s independence to enhance their quality of life. This had resulted in people having new and exciting experiences, reducing the level of support they needed due to staff developing people’s skill sets and people moving on from the service with a new level of independence and lease of life. The management and staff team continued to foster a caring and compassionate culture which put people at the centre of their care. People were supported to follow their interests and staff supported them to overcome any barriers to make the most of new opportunities. Staff really cared for people they supported and were invested in maintaining and promoting their wellbeing.

Staff had an in-depth knowledge of the people they supported and worked with them daily to improve their quality of life. Activities were led by people’s choices and were reflective of their social, cultural and wellbeing needs. Staff really focussed on people’s interests to enable them to have new experiences. People were supported to be active in their local communities and develop new skills to broaden their horizons.

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. People’s nutritional and healthcare needs were met in a timely way. Staff received a range of training opportunities that were specifically designed to enable them to effectively support people using the service.

People were safe. One person told us, “I do feel safe, they are very good. I would tell the carers if I felt unsafe.” Risks to people were identified, assessed and

managed safely with an enabling and empowering focus so no one was restricted. Staff supported people to take positive risks and were flexible in their approach. There were enough staff to meet people’s needs safely and recruitment processes were robust with people included so they had a say about who might be employed to support them. Medicines were managed and administered safely, by trained and competent staff who supported people to have as much control as possible .

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

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Rating at the last inspection

The last rating for this service was outstanding (published 03 August 2016).

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.