About the service:

29 Manchester Road is a residential care home that accommodates up to two people living with learning disabilities or autistic spectrum disorder. At the time of our inspection there were two people living at the home.

The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen. 'Registering the Right Support' CQC policy.

What life is like for people using this service:

People received safe care and support as the staff team had been trained to recognise signs of abuse or risk and understood what to do to safely support people. People received safe support with their medicines by competent staff members. The provider had systems in place to respond to any medicine errors. Staff members followed effective infection prevention and control procedures. When risks to people’s health and welfare were identified, the provider acted to minimise the likelihood of occurrence.

The provider supported staff in providing effective care for people through person-centred care planning, training, supervision. People were promptly referred to additional healthcare services when required. People were supported to maintain a healthy diet. The environment where people lived suited their individual needs and preferences.

People received help and support from a kind and compassionate staff team with whom they had positive relationships. People were supported by staff members who were aware of their individual protected characteristics like age and gender. People were supported to develop their independence and to set achievable goals in life.

People participated in a range of activities that met their individual choices and preferences and that they found interesting and stimulating. People were provided with information in a way that they could understand. Policies and guidelines important to people were provided in an easy to read format with pictures to aid their understanding. The provider had systems in place to encourage and respond to any complaints or compliments from people or visitors.

The provider had effective systems to monitor the quality of the service they provided and to drive improvements where needed. The provider and management team had good links with the local community which people benefited from.

More information in Detailed Findings below.

Rating at last inspection: Good (date last report published 02 September 2016).

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection based on the rating at the last inspection, ‘Good.’ At this inspection we found the service remained good in all key questions with an overall rating of ‘Good.’

Follow up:

We will continue to monitor all intelligence received about the service to ensure the next planned inspection is scheduled accordingly.

This inspection was unannounced and took place on the 31 May 2016.

29 Manchester Road is a small residential care home and provides accommodation and support for up to two people who have a learning disability. The accommodation is divided in to two small self-contained flats with a central sleep-in room for staff.

29 Manchester Road is required to have a registered manager and at the time of our inspection, there was one in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission 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.

The provider had effective systems in place to safeguard people and keep them safe. Safe recruitment procedures were followed and pre-employment checks were undertaken to ensure staff were safe and able to work within the care sector.

People were involved in completing their care plans to inform staff of what was important to the individual and how they wanted their needs met. Care plans were focused on the person and contained appropriate risk assessments.

People received care and support from staff who knew people well. People were supported to access health, social and medical care, as required.

There were sufficient staff on duty to meet people’s needs. The provider arranged for training and staff told us they had completed training to enable them to meet people’s needs. People were supported by staff who were kind and compassionate. People’s privacy and dignity was respected by staff.

Medicines were managed safely by staff who had received appropriate training to help ensure safe practice. Medicines were stored, administered and disposed of safely and in accordance with current guidance.

People were supported and included in decisions made in their best interests. The staff had received training in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). When required, applications for people living at the service to the local authority for assessment and authorisation had been made.

Staff encouraged people to make decisions; staff respected people’s decisions whilst ensuring and being aware of balancing people’s safety with risk taking. The service was focused on each person and accounted for personal likes, dislikes, needs and preferences.

There was a complaints procedure in place. People were encouraged and supported to express their views about their care and staff were responsive to their comments.

At our visit there was one person living at the home and we spoke with them about their care. We also examined records and spoke to two members of staff working at the service.

Is the service safe?

The person living at 29 Manchester Road told us they felt safe living there and said they would find it easy to talk to the manager if they had any worries. We found that staff spoke with people about what abuse is and what to do if they felt unsafe in the home. Staff used an 'easy read' booklet, which contained simple wording and pictures to help people understand this.

We found that the manager had identified that some restrictions to the person's liberty may be needed to help keep them safe. Because of this, the manager had followed the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and made a formal application to the relevant local authority for an assessment to be completed for the use of Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards 2009 (DOLS) for the person's care. Records also showed that formal authorisation for this had been granted. This meant that the person using the service was protected against the risk of unlawful or excessive control or restraint because the provider had made suitable arrangements.

Is the service effective?

Records showed that specific areas of care were risk assessed. Where any risks to people's safety were identified from these, written care plans detailed the action to be taken by staff to reduce these. People's care plan records also showed how staff monitored the effectiveness of people's care, including their health conditions. This meant that people’s needs were properly assessed and they were protected against the risks of receiving inappropriate care or treatment.

Is the service caring?

We found that staff regularly held meetings with people living at the home. We read the minutes of a recent meeting and found that people were given the opportunity to talk about things that were important to them. This included their accommodation, things they liked and didn’t like and planning social activities and trips. The person we spoke with told us they had regular meetings with staff and could talk to them about different things. This meant that people had an ongoing involvement in their care and treatment.

Is the service responsive?

At our visit we found that the person using the service had been supported by staff on a local walk. When we spoke with the person they told us, “I’m happy with how staff support me.” When we read the care file we found that staff regularly supported them to go out walking as part of supporting their healthy lifestyle. Their care records also described how staff supported the person to choose healthy food and to manage their weight. This meant that people’s care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that was intended to ensure their safety and welfare.

Is the service well-led?

The provider had an effective system in place to identify, assess and manage risks to the health, safety and welfare of people using the service and others. Records showed that the provider arranged for regular checks to be made of all electrical equipment and fire equipment in the home and gas safety. The provider regularly checked that staff training was up to date and that staff supervisions, team meetings and meetings with people using the service had been completed.