The inspection took place on 4 and 6 October 2016. The visit on the 4 October was unannounced. We told the provider we would be returning on the second day.

This was the first inspection of the service since it was registered on the 14 August 2015

London Care Partnership Limited - 13 Alexandra Gardens is a care home for up to 12 adults who have a learning disability and autism or other associated needs. At the time of our inspection there were 12 people living at the service. The people living at the home were adults under the age of 25 years. Four people lived in self-contained flats and eight other people lived within the main building. People living at the home had a range of autistic spectrum needs and some additional physical, sensory, health and/or communication needs as well as a learning disability.

The service was run by London Care Partnership Limited, a privately owned organisation who run seven care homes for younger adults with learning disabilities in London and the South East of England.

There was a registered manager 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

The service had made a difference to the lives of people who lived there. Everyone living at the service was a young adult who had moved out of their parental home or residential schools into the service. There had been positive changes for these young adults in the year since the service opened which could be measured and evidenced through their personal achievements, their happiness and the fact they were able to try new things and have new experiences. For example, one person was attending college and other people were accessing local community facilities such as sports centres. There had also been a significant reduction in the number of incidents where people expressed their anger or anxiety through physical aggression. Before moving to the home, the majority of people had been physically challenging towards others some or most of the time. There was evidence that challenges such as these were now rare for everybody living at the service.

In addition, the staff were still providing new opportunities and experiences for people and supporting them to constantly reflect on what they had achieved and look at what they would like to do in the future. For example, some people were being supported to start the process of applying for work or college placements. Other people were learning skills to be more independent.

People lived in a safe, comfortable and homely environment. They were able to take risks and were supported to make decisions which reflected their preferences and individual needs. The staff worked in an extremely person centred way, by responding to the person's individual communication and sensory needs to make sure the care and support they were providing was right for each person. This included the way in which they responded to risks, making sure people felt safe and had the support they needed in any given situation. This meant that each person had a bespoke service which developed with them and changed to reflect the changes taking place in their lives, confidence and abilities. This was confirmed by the relatives and professionals who we spoke with, who felt the person centred approach was a particularly positive feature of the service.

People living at the home felt happy there and were able to follow their own personal interests. Each person had a plan of social, leisure and educational activities which was tailor made for them and considered how they wanted to live their lives as well as their emotional and health needs. The staff worked very closely with a team of healthcare consultants to make sure support was planned in an approp