Kyleakin Connections Support Service
Old School Kyleakin Isle of Skye IV41 8PH
Telephone: 01599 534752
Type of inspection: Unannounced Inspection completed on: 31 March 2017
Service provided by: Service provider number: Skye & Lochalsh Association for SP2003001716 Disability
Care service number: CS2003008504 Inspection report
About the service
Kyleakin Connections is a day centre, registered to provide a support service for up to 12 adults with learning or physical disabilities. The service is provided through the Skye and Lochalsh Association for Disability (SLAD) which is a registered charity that was set up in 1983.
The service operates every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. The café and bookshop is run by the service users on a Wednesday. A wide range of activities is available on the other days which aims to promote the development of life skills, educational work, cooking, arts and crafts, projects, conservation, gardening, gaining various qualifications, outdoor pursuits, IT skills and the development of partnerships with other bodies.
The service offers a 'safe environment where people can come together to learn new skills and improve existing skills. Their aims are to 'encourage independent living for people with learning/physical disabilities, to help develop their independence and to lead ordinary, fully inclusive lives within the community.'
What people told us
There were ten people using the service at the time of the inspection.
We spoke with three people using the service and one carer during the inspection. People were very complimentary of the service and the support they received and gave us positive feedback about the staff who cared for them.
Comments we received included:
"It's great to work here. All my friends are here." "The days we run the café are really busy and local people really like coming here." "We're all training for the triathlon just now and we're getting quicker at swimming."
Self assessment
The provider submitted a self-assessment. The self-assessment identified some areas that the provider believed could be improved and how they planned to do this.
From this inspection we graded this service as:
Quality of care and support 6 - Excellent Quality of environment not assessed Quality of staffing not assessed Quality of management and leadership 5 - Very Good
What the service does well
Inspection report for Kyleakin Connections page 2 of 5 Inspection report
We found this service was performing to an excellent standard with regard to the quality of care and support provided.
Care plans were comprehensive with detailed person-centred information. People using the service told us they were fully involved with their plans of care and we could see good choices were available and the service was flexible to their needs. eW saw evidence of regular reviews of care which involved service users and their families.
Risk assessments were appropriate and covered all individual activities that each service user participated in. We saw that service users were fully engaged with meaningful activities which accessed the outdoors and engaged with the local community. Activities were many and varied and included photography, IT skills, cooking, gardening, outdoor pursuits. Service users spoke enthusiastically about their current training towards a triathlon event.
During the inspection, service users were busy preparing to open the café to the public. All the service users told me they loved working in the café and they enjoyed being responsible for the job they did on the day. We could see care and support was given patiently on a one to one basis and we saw excellent interactions between staff and people using the service, demonstrating respect and dignity at all times.
There was evidence of input from other agencies including the community nurse for learning disabilities and the West Highland College, University of Highlands and Islands.
The service business plan was under evaluation at the time of the inspection and a draft copy was available. Company policies, including the complaints process, were appropriate and comprehensive. Accident and incident reports were complete. Quality assurance systems were in place. Care plans were audited regularly. Service users held their own meetings and fed back any actions to the manager.
The manager had a plan in place for registering staff with the Scottish Social Services Council, once the start date has been determined by the Scottish Government.
In summary we found that the service provided an exceptionally high level of quality of care and support to the people using the service. There was an established, experienced staff team who knew all of the clients very well. The manager and staff were clearly committed to providing the highest standards and the outcomes we observed were excellent.
What the service could do better
The manager should consider reviewing the policy for documentation and record keeping. Care plan updates and risk assessments are well documented and some are held electronically. The system should be revised to make sure that all staff members sign and date their own entries.
Requirements Number of requirements: 0
Inspection report for Kyleakin Connections page 3 of 5 Inspection report
Recommendations Number of recommendations: 0
Complaints
There have been no complaints upheld since the last inspection. Details of any older upheld complaints are published at www.careinspectorate.com.
Inspection and grading history
Date Type Gradings 13 Sep 2012 Unannounced Care and support 5 - Very good Environment 5 - Very good Staffing 5 - Very good Management and leadership 5 - Very good
17 Nov 2010 Announced Care and support 4 - Good Environment Not assessed Staffing Not assessed Management and leadership Not assessed
5 Nov 2009 Announced Care and support 5 - Very good Environment Not assessed Staffing 5 - Very good Management and leadership Not assessed
6 Nov 2008 Announced Care and support 5 - Very good Environment 4 - Good Staffing 5 - Very good Management and leadership 4 - Good
Inspection report for Kyleakin Connections page 4 of 5 Inspection report
To find out more
This inspection report is published by the Care Inspectorate. You can download this report and others from our website.
Care services in Scotland cannot operate unless they are registered with the Care Inspectorate. We inspect, award grades and help services to improve. We also investigate complaints about care services and can take action when things aren't good enough.
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Other languages and formats
This report is available in other languages and formats on request.
Tha am foillseachadh seo ri fhaighinn ann an cruthannan is cànain eile ma nithear iarrtas.
Inspection report for Kyleakin Connections page 5 of 5