1. Report Summary

A review of the SWALLOW service at Redfield Road was carried out in May 2007 by Caroline Clark on behalf of the Supporting People Team.  The service provides supported accommodation to 6 people with learning difficulties.

The review found that the service is strategically relevant to the Supporting People programme and contributes to the B&NES Commissioning Strategy for Adults with Learning Difficulties and the Valuing People agenda.

Tenants were clearly very proud of their service.  All those consulted as part of the review process were members of the Management Committee and spoke enthusiastically about their involvement in the service.  This is backed up by feedback from other agencies who commented on how tenants feel empowered by being involved in decision making.

Quality of the service is high with a focus on service user involvement and multi agency working.  As a result the service achieved level A in 4 of the objectives of the quality assessment framework (QAF), as laid out by the Department of Communities and Local Government formerly the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM).

The service is currently 20% funded by Supporting People (following a reduction from 50% recommended by the last review).  However it is felt that the true level of support being provided a the scheme is closer to 35%.

2.         Introduction to Agency

SWALLOW (South Wansdyke Learning and Living Our Way) is a charity based in Midsomer Norton.  The service was registered as a Domiciliary Care Agency in July 2004 and provides personal care and support services to adults with a learning disability and to those who, in addition to their learning disability, have mental health needs and/or a physical disability.

The scheme is made up of two adjoined properties at Redfield Road, Midsomer Norton, creating flats for 6 people with Learning Difficulties, plus a room for staff resources.  The property is owned by Bristol Churches Housing Association and residents have assured tenancies.   SWALLOW also provides support to one individual who has moved out of Redfield Road, although this does not come out of SP funding.

The service was registered with the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) as a Domiciliary Care Agency in July 2004.

In addition to the SP funded supported living scheme at Redfield Road SWALLOW also runs ‘Base House’, offering overnight training and support to adults aged 18-65 and young adults aged 16-18.  This is a training house where members learn the skills necessary to be able to live independently or in supported accommodation.  25% of the funding for this service comes from voluntary grants with the remaining 75% through fundraising, mainly from companies and grant making trusts.

The SWALLOW office is also the venue for a number of courses, activities and workshops such as music, relaxation, poetry, healthy eating and fitness.

Users of the service have asked to be described as ‘Tenants’ and this has replaced the term ‘service user’ in this report.

7.  Quality Assessment Framework (QAF) Outcomes

The objectives were assessed as follows:

* At the time of the last review services were assessed against only 4 QAF criteria.   Needs and Risk Assessment and Support Planning were combined into C1.1 and there was no objective around complaints.

C1.1 – Risk and Needs Assessment

This was validated at level A with evidence of joint assessments, shared protocols and the participation of external experts in assessments when necessary.  Through their involvement in the Management Committee tenants are involved in reviewing needs and risk assessment and review procedures.

C1.2 – Support Planning

There was evidence of the involvement of external experts in support planning as well as evidence of mechanisms to facilitate and enable joint working with external agencies.  Service users are involved in periodic reviews of the needs and review procedures through the Management Committee and Evaluation Days and outcomes of individual reviews are used to inform service development.

C1.3 – Security, Health and Safety

This was again validated at level A with clear evidence of the involvement of tenants in the review of health and safety and security policies and procedures.  Policies and procedures relating to health and safety are comprehensive and regularly updated.

C1.4 – Protection from Abuse

SWALLOW are working at above level B in this area with active involvement of tenants in reviewing the policies and procedures and they have policies in place for dealing with perpetrators and victim support.  However, it was not possible to evidence multi-agency working and could therefore not be validated at Level A.

C1.5 – Fair Access, Diversity and Inclusion

SWALLOW have clear policies in place around fair access and equal opportunities.  The service actively targets hard to reach groups through leaflets and newsletters and there are policies in place for identifying perpetrators and responding to victim support.   Stakeholders were able to confirm their involvement in reviewing the eligibility criteria and access to the scheme is independently reviewed by both CSCI and Places for People.

C1.6 – Complaints

The service was assessed as working at level B in complaints.  The complaints policy is clearly written and regularly reviewed.  Tenants confirmed that they knew about the procedure and felt able to complain.  The policy states that independent advocacy is available to help service users to use the complaints system and the complaints log is used to determine consequent changes to the service.  This objective could not however be validated at level A since the complaints procedure makes no reference to complaints from external individuals or organisations. 

8.         Consultation

8.1       Consultation with Staff

The Senior Manager, Deputy Housing Manager and a Support Worker were interviewed individually during the review. 

Consultation Findings

• Staff had been in post for between 6 months and 10 years and all had a clear understanding of their roles and how they fit into the organisation.
• Staff are well qualified and experienced in working with people with learning difficulties in a supported living environment.
• All staff have received appropriate training and confirmed that SWALLOW is very supportive of the professional development of staff and there is plenty of training available.
• Staff confirmed that the support planning process is very user led and that support plans are an essential tool in ensuring that tenants are getting the right level of support.  Tenants appear to enjoy the process as it gives them the opportunity to own their support plans and have their say.  Support plans are used as a working document and are particularly useful for relief staff who have less knowledge of the needs of individual tenants.
• Initial assessments are carried out by managers who have all had PCP training and showed a thorough understanding of the process.  Support plans are formally reviewed annually but updated and informally reviewed every 3 months or as necessary.
• Staff were able to give examples of joint working in a number of ways including PCP meetings, social work care plans and day centre review meetings.  They clearly have close links with Connections and the CLDT and were able to describe links with a number of other organisations including i-2-i, Norton Radstock College and Your Say.
• Staff are keen to ensure that the scheme is accessible to all, although due to the long term nature of the service vacancies come up very rarely.  SWALLOW would like to expand their supported housing and have discussed the possibility of finding another property with the landlord.
• All key policies, procedures and other documents are made available in both standard and Easy English formats. 

8.2       Consultation with Tenants

5 (out of a total of 6) tenants were interviewed, either individually in their flats or in a group setting.

Consultation Findings

• All tenants spoken to have lived in the scheme for a number of years, many since it first opened.
• All spoke enthusiastically about their support plans and about their own involvement in the process.  They hold copies of their support plans in their own flats and confirmed that they are reviewed regularly.
• Tenants feel that the best things about living in the scheme are their independence, having fun together and going on outings they’ve arranged themselves.
• All the tenants spoken to are members of the SWALLOW Management Committee.  They were keen to talk about how they are involved in everything that goes on within SWALLOW including being involved in staff interviews and organising day trips and social events. 

Other Stakeholders

Feedback was received from two Assessment and Reviewing Officers from the CLDT at Bridges and an officer from the Commissioning and Contracts team.

• There is a high demand for this type of service and referrers felt that it is likely to increase as people move out of residential care, particularly people with Individual Budgets.
• Quality of accommodation is good as is the location within easy reach of services.
• Although vacancies rarely arise referrers work closely with SWALLOW when making referrals to the service and communication is ‘very good’ throughout the process.
• Once a client has been accepted into the scheme SWALLOW stays in constant contact with staff at Bridges and they work jointly on reviews.
• Assessment and Reviewing Officers felt that the service works very well for their clients and is able to be flexible enough to provide the right level of support as required.
• It was felt that schemes of this type offer so much, particularly to younger people, providing independent accommodation with flexible support and peer support. 
• Staff at SWALLOW know their tenants really well and work hard to push their independence skills.
• One Assessment and Reviewing Officer commented that “tenants feel empowered by being involved in decision making”.
• Although communication is very good between CLDT and SWALLOW one stakeholder commented that they are not always sure whether they should be talking to the Manager or Support Worker when needing information about individual tenants.
• SWALLOW staff have good knowledge of the support services available and are very proactive and quick to ask if unsure.

10. Value for Money

SW Benchmark costs (lower) - Medium Support £151.76, High Support £333.56

SW Benchmark costs (Upper) - Medium Support £151.76, High Support £449.00 

SW Benchmark Costs - Lower £12.85

SW Benchmark Costs -  Upper £15.85

Both the cost per support hour and number of support hours per user fall within benchmark figures.

The weekly unit cost is well below the expected range when compared with learning disability services regionally and represents excellent value for money.

Following the recommendations of the last review the service is currently 20% funded by Supporting People.  However, examination of support plans and discussions with staff would indicate that the actual level of housing related support being delivered is closer to 35%.