DCW06-Compliance with the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 Policy
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{{org_field_name}}
Registration Number: {{org_field_registration_no}}
Compliance with the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 Policy
1. Introduction
{{org_field_name}} is committed to providing safe, effective, person-centred and outcome-focused domiciliary care services in Wales. This policy explains how the service meets its duties under the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 and how it works in accordance with the Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act 2016, the Regulated Services (Service Providers and Responsible Individuals) (Wales) Regulations 2017, as amended, and the statutory guidance issued by Welsh Ministers for providers and responsible individuals of domiciliary support services.
This policy applies to all employees, workers, volunteers, contractors, managers, the Responsible Individual, and any person acting on behalf of {{org_field_name}}. It applies to the planning, delivery, review and monitoring of all domiciliary care services provided to individuals in their own homes or in the community.
The purpose of this policy is to ensure that care and support are delivered in a way that promotes well-being, respects individual rights, supports personal outcomes, protects people from abuse and neglect, and meets the expectations of Care Inspectorate Wales.
2. Legal and Regulatory Framework
{{org_field_name}} will operate in accordance with the following legislation, regulations, statutory guidance and national requirements, as applicable to domiciliary care providers in Wales:
Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014.
Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act 2016.
Regulated Services (Service Providers and Responsible Individuals) (Wales) Regulations 2017, as amended.
Welsh Government statutory guidance for service providers and responsible individuals on meeting service standard regulations.
Wales Safeguarding Procedures.
Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards, where applicable.
Equality Act 2010.
Human Rights Act 1998.
Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR.
Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992.
Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013.
Social Care Wales Code of Professional Practice for Social Care.
Any relevant CIW guidance, Welsh Government guidance, local authority requirements and safeguarding board procedures.
3. Policy Statement
{{org_field_name}} will ensure that every individual receiving domiciliary care is treated with dignity, respect and compassion. Care and support will be planned and delivered in a way that reflects the individual’s personal outcomes, wishes, needs, language, culture, beliefs, strengths, risks and preferences.
The service will not rely on the Care Act 2014 as the main legal framework for Wales. The Care Act 2014 applies mainly to adult social care in England. In Wales, the relevant social care framework is the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014, together with RISCA 2016 and the Regulated Services Regulations 2017.
The service will work in partnership with individuals, families, representatives, commissioners, local authorities, health professionals, safeguarding teams, advocates and other relevant agencies to ensure that care is coordinated, lawful and focused on the individual’s well-being.
4. Principles of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014
The service will embed the core principles of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 into everyday practice.
Well-being
The service will promote the well-being of individuals by supporting their physical and mental health, emotional well-being, protection from abuse and neglect, education, training and recreation where relevant, domestic, family and personal relationships, contribution to society, social and economic well-being, suitability of living accommodation, and control over day-to-day life.
Voice and Control
Individuals will be supported to express what matters to them and to make choices about their care and support. Staff will listen to individuals, respect their preferences, and support them to remain in control of their daily routines wherever possible.
Prevention and Early Intervention
The service will work to prevent, reduce or delay the development or escalation of care and support needs. Staff will report changes in need, risks, deterioration, missed medication, nutrition or hydration concerns, falls risks, mental health concerns, pressure care concerns, and any other issue that may affect the individual’s well-being.
Co-production
Care and support will be planned with the individual, and where appropriate their family, representative, advocate or relevant professionals. Individuals will be involved in decisions about their support and will be encouraged to identify their own outcomes and preferred ways of achieving them.
Multi-agency Working
The service will work constructively with local authorities, health boards, community professionals, safeguarding teams, commissioners, advocates and other agencies. Information will be shared lawfully and proportionately where this is necessary to protect the individual, meet assessed needs, manage risk or support continuity of care.
5. Role of the Provider, Responsible Individual and Registered Manager
{{org_field_name}} will ensure that clear governance arrangements are in place for the safe and effective operation of the service.
The Provider will ensure that the service is properly resourced, lawfully operated, financially sustainable, and delivered in accordance with the service registration, Statement of Purpose and regulatory requirements.
The Responsible Individual will maintain effective oversight of the quality, safety and management of the service. The Responsible Individual will ensure that the service is monitored, that quality assurance systems are effective, that the Statement of Purpose is accurate, that regulatory notifications are made where required, and that improvement actions are addressed.
The Registered Manager will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the service. This includes assessment, care planning, staff deployment, supervision, training, safeguarding, complaints, incident management, audits, records, reviews, risk management and communication with individuals, staff and professionals.
Staff will be responsible for delivering care and support in accordance with the individual’s personal plan, risk assessments, this policy, the Social Care Wales Code of Professional Practice, and the provider’s policies and procedures.
6. Statement of Purpose
The service will maintain an accurate and up-to-date Statement of Purpose in line with RISCA and the Regulated Services Regulations. The Statement of Purpose will describe the service provided, the range of needs the service is intended to meet, the location and delivery arrangements, staffing arrangements, governance arrangements, and any other information required by regulation.
The service will not provide care or support outside the scope of its registration or Statement of Purpose unless the Statement of Purpose, risk assessments, staffing arrangements and regulatory position have been reviewed and updated where required.
7. Assessment Before Service Commencement
Before providing domiciliary care, the service will ensure that sufficient information is obtained to determine whether the individual’s needs can be safely and effectively met. This may include information from the individual, their family or representative, the local authority, health professionals, commissioners, hospital discharge teams, social workers or other relevant agencies.
The assessment process will consider the individual’s care and support needs, personal outcomes, communication needs, mental capacity, consent, mobility, medication, nutrition and hydration, continence, skin integrity, cognition, emotional well-being, social needs, cultural needs, religious needs, language needs, environmental risks, equipment needs, manual handling needs, safeguarding risks and any known health conditions.
The service will only agree to provide care where it is satisfied that the individual’s needs can be met safely, that suitably trained and competent staff are available, and that the service has capacity to deliver the agreed support.
8. Personal Plans and Care Planning
Each individual will have a personal plan that sets out how their care and support will be provided. The personal plan will be based on assessed needs, identified risks, personal outcomes, preferences, routines and any requirements set by the commissioner or local authority.
The personal plan will include sufficient detail to guide staff on what support is required, how the individual wishes to be supported, what the intended outcomes are, how risks should be managed, and what action staff must take if concerns arise.
Personal plans will be written in clear language and made available to relevant staff. Individuals and, where appropriate, their representatives will be involved in preparing and reviewing the plan.
Personal plans will be reviewed at agreed intervals and whenever there is a significant change in the individual’s needs, risks, circumstances, preferences or care arrangements. Reviews will consider whether the service continues to meet the individual’s outcomes and whether any changes are required.
9. Promoting Personal Outcomes
The service will focus on what matters to the individual rather than only on tasks. Staff will support individuals to maintain independence, make choices, retain skills, participate in daily routines, access the community where this forms part of the agreed support, and maintain relationships that are important to them.
Care records and reviews will reflect progress towards personal outcomes and identify any barriers to achieving them. Where outcomes are not being met, the service will consider whether the care plan, staffing arrangements, timing of calls, equipment, risk controls or external professional input need to be reviewed.
10. Welsh Language and Communication
The service will respect the communication needs and language preferences of individuals. Where an individual wishes to receive care and support through the medium of Welsh, or has Welsh as their preferred or first language, the service will take reasonable steps to support this.
The service will follow the principle of the Active Offer where applicable by identifying language needs and not relying solely on individuals to request Welsh language support. Communication needs will be recorded in the personal plan, including any needs relating to sensory impairment, speech, cognition, learning disability, dementia, mental health, literacy, culture or preferred method of communication.
Information will be provided in a format that the individual can understand wherever reasonably practicable.
11. Equality, Diversity and Human Rights
The service will promote equality, dignity and human rights in all areas of care delivery. Individuals will not be discriminated against on the basis of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, language, culture, social background or any other protected or personal characteristic.
Care and support will be delivered in a way that respects privacy, dignity, autonomy, family life, religious belief, cultural identity and personal choice. Any restrictions on choice or liberty must be lawful, necessary, proportionate, risk assessed and recorded.
12. Mental Capacity, Consent and Decision-Making
The service will assume that adults have capacity to make their own decisions unless there is evidence to suggest otherwise. Staff will support individuals to make decisions by providing information in a way they can understand and by giving them time and appropriate support.
Where there are concerns about an individual’s capacity to make a specific decision, the service will follow the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and relevant local procedures. Any best interests decision must be decision-specific, recorded, proportionate and involve appropriate people.
Staff must obtain consent before providing care or support. Where an individual refuses care, staff must respect the refusal unless immediate action is required to prevent serious harm. Refusals, concerns and risks must be recorded and escalated in accordance with the provider’s procedures.
13. Safeguarding
The service will protect individuals from abuse, neglect, exploitation and improper treatment. Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.
Staff must be trained to recognise and respond to signs of abuse and neglect, including physical abuse, emotional abuse, sexual abuse, financial abuse, domestic abuse, discriminatory abuse, organisational abuse, neglect, self-neglect, modern slavery and exploitation.
Any safeguarding concern must be reported immediately to the Registered Manager or designated safeguarding lead. Where required, referrals will be made to the relevant local authority safeguarding team, police, health professionals, commissioners, CIW or other agencies in accordance with the Wales Safeguarding Procedures and local safeguarding arrangements.
Staff must not investigate safeguarding concerns themselves unless specifically authorised as part of a lawful process. Their responsibility is to recognise, report, record and preserve evidence where appropriate.
The service will maintain safeguarding records, monitor themes and trends, and take action to reduce the risk of recurrence.
14. Duty to Report Concerns and Whistleblowing
Staff must report poor practice, unsafe care, abuse, neglect, dishonesty, regulatory breaches, unsafe staffing, record falsification, medication errors, missed visits, unexplained injuries, financial concerns or any conduct that may place individuals at risk.
The service will maintain a Whistleblowing Policy that allows staff to raise concerns without fear of victimisation. Staff may raise concerns with the Registered Manager, Responsible Individual, provider, local authority, CIW, Social Care Wales, safeguarding team or other relevant body where appropriate.
15. Safe Recruitment
The service will operate safe recruitment procedures to ensure that staff are suitable to work with individuals who receive domiciliary care.
Recruitment checks will include identity checks, right to work checks, employment history, references, Disclosure and Barring Service checks at the appropriate level, checks against barred lists where applicable, qualifications, professional registration where required, and assessment of values, competence and suitability.
Staff will not work unsupervised until required checks have been completed and the service is satisfied that they are suitable for the role.
16. Social Care Wales Registration and Code of Professional Practice
The service will ensure that staff who are required to register with Social Care Wales are registered within the required timescales and maintain their registration.
Staff must follow the Social Care Wales Code of Professional Practice for Social Care. Failure to follow the Code may result in disciplinary action, referral to Social Care Wales, or other appropriate action.
The service will support staff to understand their professional responsibilities, including accountability, dignity, safeguarding, confidentiality, competence, honesty and safe practice.
17. Staff Training, Supervision and Competence
The service will ensure that staff receive induction, training, supervision and support appropriate to their role. Training will include, where relevant, safeguarding, medication, moving and handling, infection prevention and control, health and safety, fire safety, food hygiene, nutrition and hydration, dementia, mental capacity, equality and diversity, record keeping, lone working, first aid, fluids and nutrition, pressure care, continence, positive behaviour support, and any specialist training required to meet individual needs.
Staff competence will be assessed through observation, supervision, spot checks, reviews of records, feedback, competency assessments and appraisals.
The service will maintain accurate training and supervision records. Staff must not undertake tasks for which they have not been trained and assessed as competent.
18. Staffing, Continuity and Visit Planning
The service will ensure that there are sufficient numbers of suitably trained, skilled and competent staff to meet the needs of individuals using the service.
Visit schedules will be planned to reflect assessed needs, agreed call times, travel time, staff competence, continuity of care, language needs, risk levels and commissioner requirements.
The service will monitor missed visits, late visits, shortened visits, staffing gaps and continuity concerns. Any missed or significantly late visit must be escalated and managed promptly to protect the individual’s safety and well-being.
The service will not accept new packages of care unless it has the capacity and competence to deliver them safely.
19. Medication Support
Where the service supports individuals with medication, this will be done in accordance with the provider’s Medication Policy, the individual’s personal plan, risk assessment, medication administration record and any professional guidance.
Staff must only support with medication tasks they are trained and competent to perform. Medication errors, omissions, refusals, discrepancies or concerns must be recorded and reported immediately.
Medication support will promote independence wherever possible and will respect the individual’s consent, preferences and safety.
20. Risk Management
The service will identify, assess and manage risks while supporting individuals to maintain independence, choice and control. Risk assessments will be proportionate and will not be used to unnecessarily restrict the individual’s rights or lifestyle.
Risk assessments may include moving and handling, falls, medication, nutrition and hydration, skin integrity, environmental risks, lone working, infection control, behaviour that may challenge, self-neglect, financial risk, community access, smoking, pets, equipment and emergency arrangements.
Risk assessments will be reviewed regularly and whenever needs or circumstances change. Staff must report new or changing risks promptly.
21. Health and Safety
The service will meet its health and safety duties to individuals, staff and others affected by its work. Staff must follow safe systems of work, use equipment correctly, report hazards, follow infection prevention and control procedures, and take reasonable care of their own safety and the safety of others.
The service will ensure that accidents, incidents, injuries, near misses and dangerous occurrences are recorded, investigated and reported where required.
22. Infection Prevention and Control
The service will maintain effective infection prevention and control procedures. Staff must follow hand hygiene, personal protective equipment, waste disposal, cleaning, laundry and outbreak procedures relevant to the care being delivered.
The service will follow current public health guidance where applicable and will update procedures in response to infectious disease risks, outbreaks or official guidance.
23. Records and Confidentiality
The service will keep accurate, complete and contemporaneous records relating to care delivery, personal plans, risk assessments, medication, incidents, safeguarding, complaints, reviews, staff recruitment, training, supervision, audits and quality monitoring.
Records must be factual, respectful, dated, signed or attributable to the person making the entry, and stored securely.
Personal information will be processed in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018, UK GDPR and the provider’s confidentiality procedures. Information will only be shared where there is a lawful basis to do so, including where sharing is necessary to protect the individual or others from harm.
24. Notifications to CIW and Other Bodies
The service will notify CIW and other relevant bodies of events, incidents or changes where notification is required by legislation, regulation or CIW guidance.
This may include serious injury, death, safeguarding matters, allegations of abuse, police involvement, serious incidents, outbreaks, absence of the manager where applicable, changes affecting the operation of the service, and other notifiable events.
Notifications will be made within the required timescales and records will be retained.
25. Complaints, Concerns and Feedback
The service will maintain an accessible complaints procedure. Individuals, relatives, representatives, staff and professionals will be encouraged to raise concerns, complaints, compliments and suggestions.
Complaints will be acknowledged, investigated and responded to in accordance with the provider’s Complaints Policy and any applicable regulatory or contractual requirements.
The service will use complaints and feedback to improve quality and reduce recurrence of issues.
26. Quality Assurance and Improvement
The service will operate effective quality assurance systems to monitor safety, quality, compliance and outcomes. This will include audits, care plan reviews, medication audits, record checks, staff spot checks, supervision, appraisals, incident reviews, safeguarding reviews, complaints analysis, service user feedback, staff feedback and management oversight.
The Responsible Individual will maintain oversight of the quality of care and support provided. Where required, quality of care reviews and reports will be completed in accordance with regulatory requirements and used to drive improvement.
Improvement actions will be recorded, allocated, monitored and reviewed until completed.
27. Working with Commissioners and Local Authorities
The service will work openly and professionally with commissioners, local authorities and health partners. The service will comply with contractual requirements where they are lawful and consistent with regulatory duties.
Where the service identifies that an individual’s needs have changed, that a package of care is insufficient, or that risks cannot be safely managed within the current arrangements, this will be escalated promptly to the relevant commissioner or professional.
28. Business Continuity
The service will maintain a Business Continuity Plan to support safe service delivery during disruption. This may include severe weather, staff shortages, IT failure, utilities failure, infectious disease outbreak, fuel disruption, office closure, provider emergency or other events affecting service delivery.
The plan will identify priority visits, communication arrangements, staffing contingencies, emergency contacts and escalation procedures.
The Business Continuity Plan will be reviewed and tested periodically.
29. Staff Conduct and Professional Boundaries
Staff must maintain professional boundaries at all times. Staff must not accept inappropriate gifts, borrow money, lend money, misuse personal information, form inappropriate relationships, involve individuals in staff personal matters, or act in any way that may exploit or harm an individual.
Any concern about staff conduct will be investigated and managed under the provider’s disciplinary, safeguarding, whistleblowing or referral procedures as appropriate.
30. Monitoring Compliance with this Policy
Compliance with this policy will be monitored through audits, supervision, spot checks, care reviews, staff meetings, incident analysis, safeguarding monitoring, complaints monitoring, quality assurance processes and Responsible Individual oversight.
Failure to follow this policy may result in retraining, supervision, disciplinary action, referral to Social Care Wales, referral to safeguarding bodies, notification to CIW, or other appropriate action.
31. Review of this Policy
This policy will be reviewed at least annually or sooner if there are changes in legislation, regulations, statutory guidance, CIW requirements, safeguarding procedures, service delivery, best practice, or organisational learning.
Responsible Person: {{org_field_registered_manager_first_name}} {{org_field_registered_manager_last_name}}
Reviewed on: {{last_update_date}}
Next Review Date: {{next_review_date}}
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