This inspection took place on 19 October 2017 and was unannounced. This meant the staff and the provider did not know we would be visiting. Belchford was last inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) on 29 September 2015 and was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

Belchford is a detached, two storey building set in its own grounds. The service comprised of seven single bedrooms, none of which were en-suite. The accommodation included a lounge, a kitchen, a dining room, several communal bathrooms/toilets and the property was surrounded by a large, enclosed garden.

The service provides care and accommodation for up to seven people with a learning disability and complex needs. On the day of our inspection there were seven people using the service.

The service had a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with 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.

People who used the service and their relatives were complimentary about the standard of care at Belchford. Relatives and staff said the registered manager was approachable and supportive.

There were sufficient numbers of staff on duty in order to meet the needs of people who used the service. The provider had an effective recruitment and selection procedure in place and carried out relevant checks when they employed staff.

Staff were suitably trained and received regular supervisions and appraisals.

Medicines were managed safely and procedures were in place to ensure people received medicines as prescribed.

Accidents and incidents were appropriately recorded and investigated. Risk assessments were in place for people who used the service. They described potential risks and the safeguards in place to mitigate these risks.

The registered manager understood their responsibilities with regard to safeguarding and staff had been trained in safeguarding vulnerable adults.

The provider carried out regular health and safety checks. Procedures were in place to deal with emergency situations.

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 had opportunities to participate in their preferred activities in the service and within the local community.

Care records were person-centred and reflective of people’s needs. People were protected from the risk of poor nutrition and staff were aware of people’s nutritional needs.

Relatives were aware of how to make a complaint but did not have any complaints about the service.

The provider had an effective system of quality assurance checks to ensure people received a good standard of care.

This inspection took place on 29 September 2015 and was unannounced. This meant the staff and the provider did not know we would be visiting.

Belchford is a detached, two storey building set in its own grounds. The home comprised of seven single bedrooms, none of which were en-suite. Four bedrooms were located on the ground floor and three bedrooms were located on the first floor. The accommodation included a lounge, a kitchen, a dining room, several bathrooms/communal toilets and the property was surrounded by a large, enclosed, well maintained garden.

The home was clean, spacious and suitable for the people who used the service.

Belchford provides care and accommodation for up to seven people with a learning disability and complex needs. On the day of our inspection there were seven people using the service.

The home had a registered manager in place. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (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.

Belchford was last inspected by CQC on 13 January 2013 and was compliant with the regulations in force at the time.

There were sufficient numbers of staff on duty in order to meet the needs of people using the service. The provider had an effective recruitment and selection procedure in place and carried out relevant checks when they employed staff.

Incidents and accidents were appropriately recorded and included details of any follow up action taken.

Medicines were administered safely and there was an effective medicines ordering system in place.

Staff training was up to date and staff received regular supervisions and appraisals.

CQC monitors the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) which applies to care homes. The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) are part of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. They aim to make sure that people in care homes, hospitals and supported living are looked after in a way that does not inappropriately restrict their freedom. We looked at records and discussed DoLS with the registered manager who told us that there were DoLS in place and in the process of being applied for.

People who used the service and their relatives were complimentary about the standard of care at Belchford.

Staff treated people with dignity and respect and helped to maintain people’s independence by encouraging them to care for themselves where possible.

People who used the service had access to a range of activities in the home and within the local community.

Care records were person-centred and reflective of people’s needs.

The provider had a complaints policy and procedure in place and complaints were fully investigated.

The provider had a robust quality assurance system in place and gathered information about the quality of their service from a variety of sources.

The arrangements for supporting people to make decisions and consent to any care, treatment and support they received were in place. We saw people were supported to take appropriate risks to promote their independence.

We saw evidence how the provider co-operated with other providers to protect the health, welfare and safety of people who used the service.

We saw the relationships people who used the service had with the staff who supported them were good. All personal support they received protected their privacy and dignity. The majority of people had some difficulty in verbal communications. However each person's care plan held detailed information about their individual communication methods and skills such as, signs, gestures and facial expressions and what these meant for each person.

The recruitment records demonstrated all appropriate checks were in place before an employee commenced work at the home.

The records we looked at showed us people were cared for and supported by suitably trained staff to deliver care, treatment and support safely and to an appropriate standard.

We found suitable arrangement were in place for handling concerns and complaints.

During the inspection people, as a result of their communication needs, could not tell us what they thought about the service provided. Therefore we spent time observing staff practices and talking to staff about the people they supported. The staff we talked with clearly knew about the needs of the people who used the service. We saw they treated people with dignity and respect. People were comfortable and relaxed and we saw them interacting with staff in a positive way.

We looked at the annual surveys people had completed comments included, “I am very happy with the way my son is looked after and he is very happy there.”

“My son is very happy, all the staff are wonderful.”

Two professional’s said the care was excellent.