Archived: Aylesbury Supported Living Service

We joined one person in their flat at lunchtime. They told us staff were around to support them when they needed help with shopping, meal preparation and cooking. The person told us staff helped them to eat healthily. They said this was their choice. We found people had a varied diet and their nutrition and hydration needs were met.

We saw people's medicines were managed safely. Some people were able to manage their own medication. Staff who handled medication had undertaken training on the safe management of medicines. Medicines were stored securely and accurate records were maintained.

There were effective recruitment and selection processes in place at the service. We looked at three staff recruitment files. Each file contained the necessary checks and clearances. This ensured staff had the right skills and experience and were suitable to work with vulnerable adults.

People's needs were assessed and they were consulted in the planning of their care plans and service delivery. Care plans noted the people's preferred routines, how people communicate, likes and dislikes, leisure and social activities.

They contained information on the number of hours of support agreed, when and how these were to be used. Documentation was provided in a format which was suitable for the individuals communication needs such as pictures and symbols.

We saw that they had a robust recruitment process in place resulting in a staff team that had the qualifications, skills and experienced to meet people's individual needs and that they had received regular training. The training manager told us 23 of the 30 staff employed have an NVQ level two or above, one other person is currently working through a NVQ level two.

We were told that people who used the service and their relatives, were made aware of the complaints policy. We saw that this was provided in an easy read format, a copy of the easy read complaints policy was attached to the provider's statement of purpose and the service user's guide. A person who used the service told us "If they were unhappy they would tell the manager".