About the service: This service provides personal care to people living with Autism and/or Learning Disabilities in Medway, Maidstone and the surrounding areas. There were 24 people receiving personal care at the time of this inspection.

People’s experience of using this service:

People felt safe with staff. People felt included in planning their care. People’s rights and their dignity and privacy were respected. People were supported to live the lifestyle of their choice. People told us they were listened to by the management of the service.

People could involve relatives or others who were important to them when they chose the care they wanted.

People were involved in talking about their personal safety in the community and in their home. This included giving people information about using the internet safely, reporting bullying or harassment and eating and drinking healthy.

Care plans had been developed to assist staff to meet people’s needs. The care plans were consistently reviewed and updated. Care plans told people’s life story, recorded who the important relatives and friends were in people’s lives and explained what lifestyle choices people had made. Care planning informed staff what people could do independently, what skills people wanted to develop and what staff needed to help people to do.

Staff were deployed in the right numbers to meet people's needs and choices. People had a say in which staff supported them and how they were recruited. The registered manager accompanied new staff to introduce them to people. If people did not get on with new staff, they could tell the registered manager who would offer to change their care staff.

Health and safety policies and management plans were implemented by staff to protect people from harm. The provider trained staff so that they understood their responsibilities to protect people from harm. Staff were encouraged and supported to raise any concerns they may have.

Incidents and accidents were recorded and checked or investigated by the registered manager to see what steps could be taken to prevent these happening again.

People were often asked if they were happy with the care they received. The care offered was inclusive and based on policies about Equality, Diversity and Human Rights. People, their relatives and health care professionals had the opportunity to share their views about the service either face-to-face, by telephone, or by using formal feedback forms.

Complaints made by people or their relatives were taken seriously and thoroughly investigated.

The registered manager recruited staff with relevant experience and the right attitude to work with people who had learning disabilities. Recruitment policies were in place. Safe recruitment practices had been followed before staff started working at the service.

New staff and existing staff were given an induction and on-going training which included information specific to the people’s needs in the service. Staff were deployed in a planned way, with the correct training, skills and experience to meet people’s needs.

There were policies and procedures in place for the safe administration of medicines. Staff followed these policies and had been trained to administer medicines safely.

Staff supported people to maintain a balanced diet and monitor their nutritional health. People had access to GPs and their health and wellbeing was supported by prompt referrals and access to medical care if they became unwell. Good quality records were kept to assist people to monitor and maintain their health.

Management systems were in use to minimise the risks from the spread of infection, staff received training about controlling infection and accessed personal protective equipment like disposable gloves and apron’s.

The service could continue to run in the event of emergencies arising so that people’s care would continue. For example, when there was heavy snow or if there was a power failure at the main

This inspection took place on 21 June 2016 and was announced.

I Say Supported Living provides care services to people in their own homes in Medway, Maidstone and the surrounding areas. The care provided was tailored to people’s needs so that people could maintain or regain their independence or provide valuable respite to family carers. Care was delivered to younger adults with learning disabilities, mental illness and physical disabilities. People needed help with day-to-day tasks like cooking, shopping, washing and dressing and help to maintain their health and wellbeing. There were 42 people using the service at the time of our inspection. The care and support people needed ranged from two hours a week to more intensive 24-hour support packages.

There was a registered manager employed at the service. 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 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. The registered manager was also the provider.

People spoke about the staff in a positive light regarding their feelings of being safe and well cared for. They thought that staff were caring and compassionate. Staff were trusted and well thought of by the people using the service.

The registered manager assessed people’s needs and planned people’s care to maintain their safety, health and wellbeing. The provider had a clear understanding of the needs they could meet to enable them to deliver a high quality of care. Risks were assessed by staff to protect people. There were systems in place to monitor incidents and accidents.

Staff had received training about protecting people from abuse and showed a good understanding of what their responsibilities were in preventing abuse. Procedures for reporting any concerns were in place. The registered manager knew how and when they should escalate concerns following the local authorities safeguarding protocols.

Staff training covered both core training like first aid and more specialised training in learning disabilities and mental health. We could see that the management and staff culture was grounded in recognised good practice in learning disability and mental health care.

The registered manager and staff had received training about the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and understood when and how to support people’s best interest if they lacked capacity to make certain decisions about their care.

Working in community settings staff often had to work on their own, but they were provided with good support and an ‘Outside Office Hours’ number to call during evenings and at weekends if they had concerns about people. The service could continue to run in the event of emergencies arising so that people’s care would continue. For example, when there was heavy snow or if there was a power failure at the main office.

Staff were recruited safely and had been through a selection process that ensured they were fit to work with people who needed safeguarding. Recruitment policies were in place that had been followed. Safe recruitment practices included background and criminal records checks prior to staff starting work.

Some people needed more than one member of staff to provide support to them. The registered manager ensured that they could provide a workforce who could adapt and be flexible to meet people’s needs and when more staff were needed to deliver care, they were provided.

People said that staff were well trained and understood their needs. They told us that staff looked at their care plans and followed the care as required. People told us that staff discussed their care with them so that they could decide how it would be delivered.

Staff had been trained to administer medicines safely and staff spoke confidently about their skills and abil