Amber Lodge is a residential care home registered to provide support to 13 people with a learning disability.

At the last inspection the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

People told us they felt safe living in the service. Risks to people were appropriately planned for and managed. Medicines were stored, managed and administered safely.

People told us there were enough suitably knowledgeable staff to provide them with support and guidance when they needed it.

Staff had received appropriate training, support and development to carry out their role effectively. Plans were in place to develop upon the skills and knowledge of the staff team.

People received appropriate support to maintain healthy nutrition and hydration.

The service was meeting the requirements of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLs). People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People told us staff were kind to them and respected their right to privacy. People said they were enabled and supported to live as independently as possible. Our observations supported this.

People told us they were encouraged to feed back on the service and participate in meetings to make decisions about activities and household matters.

People received personalised care that met their individual needs and preferences. People were actively involved in the planning of their care. People were enabled to access meaningful activities and follow their individual interests.

People told us they knew how to complain and felt they would be listened to.

The manager instilled a culture of openness and transparency within the service. Staff and people using the service were invited to take part in discussions around shaping the future of the service.

There was a robust quality assurance system in place and shortfalls identified were promptly acted on to improve the service.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

Amber Lodge is a residential care home registered to provide support to 13 people with a learning disability.

At the last inspection the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

People told us they felt safe living in the service. Risks to people were appropriately planned for and managed. Medicines were stored, managed and administered safely.

People told us there were enough suitably knowledgeable staff to provide them with support and guidance when they needed it.

Staff had received appropriate training, support and development to carry out their role effectively. Plans were in place to develop upon the skills and knowledge of the staff team.

People received appropriate support to maintain healthy nutrition and hydration.

The service was meeting the requirements of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLs). People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People told us staff were kind to them and respected their right to privacy. People said they were enabled and supported to live as independently as possible. Our observations supported this.

People told us they were encouraged to feed back on the service and participate in meetings to make decisions about activities and household matters.

People received personalised care that met their individual needs and preferences. People were actively involved in the planning of their care. People were enabled to access meaningful activities and follow their individual interests.

People told us they knew how to complain and felt they would be listened to.

The manager instilled a culture of openness and transparency within the service. Staff and people using the service were invited to take part in discussions around shaping the future of the service.

There was a robust quality assurance system in place and shortfalls identified were promptly acted on to improve the service.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

We spoke with six of the 12 people who used the service. They told us that they were happy living in the service. One person said, “I am really happy.” Another person said, “Yes I like it, I am happy.” Another said, “They (staff) help me when I need help.”

People told us about their daily work and/or day services that they attended. They also told us about the choices that they made about the activities they participated in, holidays and what they ate.

People told us that the staff treated them with respect and kindness. One person said, “They (staff) are nice to me.” Another person said, “I love them.” Another said, "They are kind and ask me what I want." This was confirmed in our observations during our inspection. We saw that staff interacted with people in a caring, respectful and professional manner.

We looked at the care records of three people who used the service and found that people experienced care, treatment and support that met their needs and protected their rights.

We looked at the staff rota and training records and found that there were enough staff who were trained to meet the needs of the people who used the service.

We found that all of the records we saw were well maintained and fit for purpose.

We looked around the service and found that people were provided with a clean and hygienic environment to live in.

We spoke with eight of the 13 people who used the service. They told us that their choices about the care and support they were provided with were listened to. One person said "I always choose what I want to do." Another person said "The staff ask me what I want and they listen to me."

People told us about the activities that they enjoyed doing both in the service and in the community. One person said "I like going out." Another person told us about the bus services that they used to go to their day placement. Another said "I go to church every week, I like it."

People told us that they chose what they wanted to eat and drink. One person said "The staff ask me what I want to eat and I can have what I want." Another person said "I like to help with the cooking."

People told us how much they liked living at Amber Lodge. The staff were kind and helpful and they could do lots of different things in the home and outside. They liked going to the various day centres during the week, and doing other things at the weekend.