Archived: The Claverings

Updated 13 October 2016

The Claverings is provided by Compass – Services to Tackle Problem Drug Use and is registered to provide the following regulated activities:

• Treatment of disease, disorder or injury

• Diagnostic and screening procedures

There was no registered manager in place for the service at the time of the inspection. The previous registered manager had recently left the service, and a new manager was being recruited. An interim manager was in place and the CQC had been notified of interim arrangements as appropriate.

The Claverings provides a drug and alcohol treatment service for adults in the London Borough of Enfield. The service provides advice and information, detoxification, substitute prescribing and psychosocial groups.

Compass – Services to Tackle Problem Drug Use has two services within the London Borough of Enfield, which work together. The Claverings provides a fully integrated drug and alcohol treatment service for adults with more complex needs, transferring to Compass Enfield when they were near to the end of treatment, or for less complex support provision.

The service had 302 clients on their caseload at the time of the inspection. Clients were seen on a regular basis at a frequency depending on the stage of their recovery or treatment.

Staff managed a needle-exchange service from the site, which operated throughout the week.

We inspected the Claverings twice in 2013 where the outcomes inspected were found to be compliant. At the time of the current inspection the service was undergoing a retendering process, substance misuse services for the Borough due to change within the next few months.

Updated 13 October 2016

We do not currently rate independent standalone substance misuse services.

We found the following issues that the service provider needs to improve:

• Medicines were not always stored at a safe temperature, and medicines incidents were not recorded to ensure that learning was taken forward. Relevant staff did not have regular medicines competence checks in place.

• Robust governance processes were not always in place. Complaints from clients were not always acknowledged or investigated.

• There was insufficient oversight of incidents to assess , monitor and learn from errors and near misses occurring at the service, to minimise future risks to staff and clients.

• Staff did not have sufficient training and professional development in their work including in working with clients with challenging behaviour, safeguarding children and adults, first aid, infection control, drug misuse, domestic violence, overdose prevention, dual diagnosis, and new psychoactive substances.

• Staff were not protected in line with the provider’s lone working policy when visiting clients on home visits.

However, we also found the following areas of good practice:

• Clients using the service were very positive regarding staff. Some clients linked their reduction in substance misuse directly to the support staff had provided.

• The service employed a Polish speaking staff member to meet the needs of the local population.

• The service worked effectively and productively with a range of other agencies.

• The service had made a number of changes following the CQC inspection of the other service run by the provider in the local area, so that significant improvements had been made in risk assessment, care planning, and frequency of medical reviews.

• The management team were aware of most areas requiring development and were committed to improving the service.