This service was last inspected in July 2013 when we found it was meeting the requirements of the five areas we inspected. This is the first comprehensive rated inspection under the Care Act 2014. This inspection took place on 4 October 2016 and was announced. We gave short notice as this service is small and we needed to ensure people were available as well as to access records.

Ashlee Lodge is registered to provide care and support for up to five younger adults. People living at this service have a learning disability and may also have autism. The service does not provide nursing care. At the time of the inspection there were five people living at Ashlee lodge.

A registered manager was 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 2014 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. The registered manager was present throughout the inspection and was responsive to feedback and suggestions.

People’s needs were well met by staff who understood people’s needs, wishes and preferred routines. Staff had training and support to do their job effectively and safely.

People were protected because there were good recruitment practices whereby any potential new staff were fully checked to ensure they were suitable to work with vulnerable people. All staff received training in understanding about abuse and knew how and when they should report any concerns.

People were supported to take part in activities which were meaningful to them. This included trips out using a vehicle owned by the service, as well as activities within the house. The service was close to shops, cafes and the seafront so people could walk to local amenities.

People’s nutritional needs, likes and dislikes were taken into consideration when planning menus. People were offered a balanced diet to maintain good health. Mealtimes were relaxed and staff sat with people to make it a sociable event.

Care was well planned, with risk assessments in place to keep people safe and ensure care and support was being offered in the least restrictive way. Staff knew people well, understood their needs and what they enjoyed doing. This helped staff to provide a person centred approach and ensured individualised care.

People were supported to express their views in a variety of ways. Staff understood people’s ways of communicating and this helped to ensure people were involved in decision making about their care and were offered day to day choices. Staff sought people’s consent for care and treatment and ensured they were supported to make as many decisions as possible. Staff confidently used the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). Where people lacked capacity, relatives, friends and relevant professionals were involved in best interest decision making. This ensured people’s rights were protected and the service consulted and worked with others to ensure the right care and support was being offered.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is required to monitor the operation of the Mental Capacity Act (2005) (MCA) and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and to report on what we find. DoLS are put in place to protect people where they live in a care home and do not have capacity to make decisions, and where it is considered necessary to restrict their freedom in some way, usually to protect themselves or others. People's consent to care and treatment was sought. Where they were unable to provide informed consent the principles of the MCA and DoLS were followed, so people's legal rights were upheld.

There were sufficient staff with the right skills and support to enable them to provide safe, effective and responsive care and support to people. Staff received training in all areas of health and safety

We weren't able to speak to people using the service because of their complex needs which meant they were not able to tell us their experiences. We gathered evidence of people's experience of the service by questionnaire responses from relatives and feedback forms from visiting professionals.

Relatives of people living at the home were complimentary about the care and support they received. One had written, "There has been an incredible positive change in my daughter in her short time here," and "A home from home." Another stated that their relative was, "Always happy to go back there after a visit."

Professionals working in partnership with the home to provide support for the people living there had commented, "Our client has been very successful since living at Ashlee Lodge," and "The staff are always friendly and courteous." A visiting chiropodist stated, "I love coming here."

There were proper recruitment and training systems in place to ensure that people were kept safe and cared for by suitably qualified and experienced staff.

The premises were homely, safe and met the needs of people who used the service. People were enabled to be involved in making decisions about their care and treatment. We found that care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that ensured people's safety and welfare.

There was an effective complaints system available but there had been no complaints received by the home since our last inspection.

We weren’t able to speak to people using the service because of their very limited verbal communication. We gathered evidence of people’s experiences of the service by reviewing comment cards and the complaints log.

We found that relatives were very happy with the care people received at the home. One said their daughter was “very happy” there. Another said that the “home is spotlessly clean”.

One commented “I have seen my relative go from a very frustrated person to a relatively calm, happy person since she has lived at the home. She smiles a lot now”.

Another person stated that “as a mother I feel happy that my daughter lives at Ashlee Lodge. It gives me peace of mind”.