Inspection of The Wilf Ward Family Trust Domiciliary Care Boothferry and Wolds took place on 14 March 2017and was unannounced. This was the first rated inspection of the service as registration was approved in August 2015.

The Wilf Ward Family Trust Domiciliary Care Boothferry and Wolds is a home care service providing 24 hour care to people that live in supported living houses. These are located across the Boothferry area from Market Weighton to Pocklington and Goole. People rent their accommodation, under tenancies, from housing associations that have agreements with The Wilf Ward Family Trust. People that use the service have a learning disability or autistic spectrum disorder and live in groups of three and four in shared rented accommodation. People receive support with personal care, finances, medication and social activities. There were 27 people receiving the service at the time of this inspection.

The registered provider is required to have a registered manager in post. On the day of the inspection there was a manager that had been registered and in post since the service was registered. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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.

People were protected from the risk of harm because the registered provider had systems in place to detect, monitor and report potential or actual safeguarding concerns. Support workers were appropriately trained in safeguarding adults from abuse and understood their responsibilities in respect of managing potential and actual safeguarding concerns. Risks were also managed and reduced on an individual and group basis so that people avoided injury or harm.

Supported living houses were maintenance checked. Each house held up-to-date premises safety certificates and contracts. Support worker numbers were sufficient to meet people’s needs and we saw that rosters in the houses accurately cross referenced with the support workers on duty. Recruitment policies, procedures and practices were carefully followed to ensure support workers were suitable to care for and support people. Recruitment incentives were in operation. We found that the management of medication was safely carried out.

People were cared for and supported by qualified and competent support workers that received regular supervision and had their personal performance annually appraised. Communication was effective, people’s mental capacity was appropriately assessed and their rights were protected, although the service had yet to submit applications to the local authority regarding Court of Protection orders that were required. The service was awaiting acknowledgement from the local authority that they were ready to receive the applications.

Employees of the service and particularly support workers had knowledge and understanding of their roles and responsibilities in respect of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and they understood the importance of people being supported to make decisions where possible. The registered manager explained how the service worked with other health and social care professionals and family members to ensure specific decisions were made in a person’s best interests where they lacked capacity to do so.

People received adequate nutrition and hydration to maintain good health and wellbeing. People received compassionate care from kind support workers who knew about people’s needs and preferences. People were involved in all aspects of their care and were always asked for their consent before support workers undertook care and support tasks. People’s wellbeing, privacy, dignity and independence were monitored and respected.

Person-centred support plans reflected people’s needs w