This was an unannounced inspection that took place on 9 November 2017.

Beechfield Care and Support is registered to provide personal care to adults with learning disabilities. People are supported by staff to live individually in their own homes or in small groups, referred to as independent supported living schemes. People are tenants of their home and pay rent for their accommodation which is leased from a housing association.

At the last inspection in July 2015 we had rated the service as good. At this inspection we found the service remained ‘good' and met each of the fundamental standards we inspected.

People told us they felt safe and were well cared for. There were sufficient staff hours available to meet people’s needs in a safe and timely way and staff roles were flexible to allow this. Staff knew about safeguarding vulnerable adults procedures. Staff were subject to robust recruitment checks. Arrangements for managing people’s medicines were also safe. Appropriate processes were in place for the administration of medicines.

Appropriate training was provided and staff were supervised and supported. 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. We have made a recommendation that more regular tenant’s meetings should take place with people to keep them involved in the running of their home.

Staff knew the people they were supporting well. Care plans were in place detailing how people wished to be supported and people were involved in making decisions about their care. The records gave detailed instructions to staff to help people learn new skills and become more independent. Risk assessments were in place and they accurately identified current risks to the person as well as ways for staff to minimise or appropriately manage those risks.

People received food and drink to meet their needs. People were assisted by staff to cook their own food. They also received meals that had been cooked by staff.

People told us they were supported to go on holiday and to be part of the local community. They were provided with opportunities to follow their interests and hobbies. People said their privacy, dignity and confidentiality were maintained.

People had access to health care professionals to make sure they received appropriate care and treatment. Staff followed advice given by professionals to make sure people received the care they needed. Most people told us staff were kind and caring and they felt comfortable with all the staff who supported them.

People had the opportunity to give their views about the service. There was consultation with staff, people and/ or family members and their views were used to improve the service. People we spoke with said they knew how to complain. The provider undertook a range of audits to check on the quality of care provided.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

The inspection took place on 24 and 27 July 2015 and was unannounced. This meant the provider or staff did not know about our inspection visit.

This was our first inspection of Beechfield Care & Support Limited (Beechfield).

Beechfield is a small domiciliary care provider in Newton Aycliffe providing support to people living in one of four adjoining houses. It is registered with the Care Quality commission to provide personal care. During our inspection we found the service provided personal care to three people.

The service has a registered manager in place. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the CQC 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.

We found that there were sufficient numbers of staff available in order to meet the needs of people using the service. All staff were trained in core areas such as safeguarding, as well as training specific to the individual needs of people using the service. We found that staff had a good knowledge of people’s preferences, needs, likes and dislikes.

Dignity in care and socialisation through encouragement and enablement were themes underpinning management and staff behaviours. We observed these behaviours during our inspection and saw evidence of them in recorded documentation. Relatives and external stakeholders told us that people were encouraged to build on social skills through interaction and we saw this during our inspection.

There were effective pre-employment checks of staff in place and effective supervision and appraisal processes.

The service had in place person-centred care plans for all people using the service. The provider sought consent from people for the care provided and regular reviews ensured relatives and healthcare professionals were involved in ensuring people’s medical, personal, social and nutritional needs were met.

The registered manager was knowledgeable on the subject of mental capacity and had undertaken relevant capacity assessments.

The service had individualised risk assessments in place and a robust range of policies and procedures to deal with a range of eventualities. We saw these processes were reviewed regularly.