This inspection took place on 12 September 2017 and it was unannounced.

Meadowcroft Residential Care Home provides accommodation and personal care for up to 10 people who live with a learning disability or autistic spectrum disorder. The service does not provide nursing care. At the time of our inspection there were 10 people using the service.

At the last inspection, the service was rated good and at this inspection we found the service remains good.

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 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People received a safe service and were protected from the risk of harm. There were enough staff that had been safely recruited to help keep people safe and meet their needs. People received their medication as prescribed.

People were cared for by experienced, supported and well trained staff. The service supported people to have as much choice and control over their lives in the least restrictive way possible. People received sufficient food and drink to meet their needs and preferences and their healthcare needs were met.

Staff knew the people they cared for well and were kind, caring and compassionate in their approach. People were encouraged and supported to remain as independent as possible. Staff ensured that people were treated with dignity and respect and their privacy was maintained at all times.

People were fully involved in the assessment and care planning process. Their care plans had been regularly reviewed to reflect their changing needs. People were encouraged and supported to participate in a range of activities to suit their individual interests. Complaints were dealt with appropriately in a timely way.

People were positive about the quality of the service. The care manager, registered manager/provider and staff were committed to providing people with good quality person centred care that met their needs and preferences. There were effective systems in place to monitor the quality of the service and to drive improvements. The service met all relevant fundamental standards.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

This inspection took place on 12 September 2017 and it was unannounced.

Meadowcroft Residential Care Home provides accommodation and personal care for up to 10 people who live with a learning disability or autistic spectrum disorder. The service does not provide nursing care. At the time of our inspection there were 10 people using the service.

At the last inspection, the service was rated good and at this inspection we found the service remains good.

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 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People received a safe service and were protected from the risk of harm. There were enough staff that had been safely recruited to help keep people safe and meet their needs. People received their medication as prescribed.

People were cared for by experienced, supported and well trained staff. The service supported people to have as much choice and control over their lives in the least restrictive way possible. People received sufficient food and drink to meet their needs and preferences and their healthcare needs were met.

Staff knew the people they cared for well and were kind, caring and compassionate in their approach. People were encouraged and supported to remain as independent as possible. Staff ensured that people were treated with dignity and respect and their privacy was maintained at all times.

People were fully involved in the assessment and care planning process. Their care plans had been regularly reviewed to reflect their changing needs. People were encouraged and supported to participate in a range of activities to suit their individual interests. Complaints were dealt with appropriately in a timely way.

People were positive about the quality of the service. The care manager, registered manager/provider and staff were committed to providing people with good quality person centred care that met their needs and preferences. There were effective systems in place to monitor the quality of the service and to drive improvements. The service met all relevant fundamental standards.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

Some people living at Meadowcroft Residential Care Home had complex needs and were unable to speak with us but we saw that they were relaxed and happy. We spoke with one person about what they enjoyed doing and it was evident that they enjoyed their lifestyle.

We saw that staff knew people well and there were good interactions between members of staff and people living in the home; staff listened to people, treated them with respect and involved them in making decisions about their care.

We noted that the environment at Meadowcroft Residential Care Home was spacious, with sufficient communal areas to meet the needs of people living there. We saw that people were comfortable in their surroundings. A new extension had been built to provide additional bedrooms and more communal space; we saw that the new areas were spacious, well designed and had en-suite facilities.

We found that staff received the training and support they needed to care for people safely. A recent increase in the number of people living in the home was well managed. People who moved from another home have settled in well and the two staff teams have worked together to ensure people received consistent support. Staff were able to demonstrate that they understood the specific needs of the people using the service and provided care in a person-centred manner.

Some of the people using the service had complex needs and chose not to speak with us to tell us their experiences.

We gathered evidence of people’s experiences of the service by observing how people spent their time and noting how they interacted with other people living in the home and with staff.

During our visit we spoke generally with some people who told us they were happy. We saw that people smiled and appeared relaxed and comfortable with staff and other people living in the home.

Relatives and healthcare professionals who completed surveys as part of the home's own quality assurance process all gave positive responses to the questions. The questions related to the standard of care, cleanliness, dignity and respect, staff, information, privacy and confidentiality. All the completed surveys rated all areas as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’.

A social care professional said, “Meadowcroft manages to be both homely/welcoming and very professional in its ambiance. There clearly exist good relationships between staff and residents and a lovely good humour exists that cannot be manufactured. A super place to visit.”

A healthcare professional said, “I have always found Kim and her staff extremely helpful, welcoming and knowledgeable. I have often turned up unannounced, this has made no difference. I am very impressed by the care and dedication shown by Kim and her staff.”

A relative said, “I am very happy with the level of service provided to my relative. [They are] always clean and well dressed. It is obvious when talking to staff that they care deeply for all the residents” and another said, “Very happy with service.”

Another relative said, “They deal with the residents with care and dignity.”

One person living in the home told us, “Staff spend time with me” and another said they were, “very happy.”