This was a follow up inspection to check that the trust had made the improvements stated in their action plan following our visits in March 2013. We spoke with two patients prior to the inspection; we spoke with four managers and six staff.

We found that there was not enough staff to ensure the needs of people using the services could be met.

There were systems in place to monitor how the trust was run to ensure that people received a quality service in a safe environment

Our inspection took place over a number of different days. During this time we visited a number of specialist community mental health teams. Staff generally felt well supported and positive about access to ongoing training.

We spoke with 30 patients. We also spoke with a representative from the local mental health support group. Patients told us they were involved in decisions about their care. One patient told us, “My GP was unhelpful but the team here are brilliant. I have had so much information and feel like I am back in charge.”

We found well structured and detailed assessments and care plans were in place to support patients’ recovery and ongoing needs. One patient was visiting one of the centres for the first time. They told us, “They’ve given me more hope in one hour than I have received in 37 years.”

Some community teams had changed their hours of working, providing patients with increased access to help and advice when needed. We were not able to fully understand how the organisation had assessed the staff it needed and where to meet patients’ needs.

We found some inconsistencies in the assessment and reporting of risks. This impacted on the quality of the assessment and monitoring of the quality and safety of care.