We inspected this service on 28 February 2017. This was an unannounced inspection. At our previous inspection in February 2015, we found that the service met the legal requirements of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.

The service is registered to provide accommodation and personal care for up to five people. People who use the service have a learning disability and or a mental health condition. At the time of our inspection five people were using the service. However, one of these people was receiving in-patient care at a local community hospital.

The service had a registered manager. 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.

We found that improvements were needed to ensure that effective systems were in place to ensure people’s care records were accurate and up to date. When care records are not accurate and up to date, people are placed at risk of receiving inconsistent or unsuitable care.

Staff understood how to keep people safe and people were involved in the assessment and management of risks to their health, safety and wellbeing. People’s medicines were managed safely.

People were protected from the risk of abuse because staff knew how to recognise and report potential abuse. Safe staffing levels were maintained to promote people’s safety and to ensure people participated in activities of their choosing.

People’s health and wellbeing needs were monitored and people were supported to access health and social care professionals as required. People could eat meals that met their individual preferences.

Staff supported people to make decisions about their care and when people were unable to make these decisions for themselves, the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 were followed. At the time of our inspection, no one was being restricted under the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). However, staff knew how to apply for a DoLS authorisation if this was required.

Staff received regular training that provided them with the knowledge and skills to meet people’s needs.

People were treated with care, kindness and respect and staff promoted people’s independence and right to privacy.

People were involved in the assessment and planning of their care and they were supported and enabled to make choices about their care. The choices people made were respected by the staff.

Staff supported people to access the community and participate in activities that met their individual preferences.

Staff sought and listened to people’s views about the care and action was taken to make improvements to care. People understood how to complain about their care and a suitable complaints procedure was in place.

People and staff told us that the registered manager was supportive and approachable. The registered manager and provider regularly assessed and monitored the quality of care to ensure standards were met and maintained.

The registered manager understood the requirements of their registration with us and they notified us of reportable incidents as required.

We inspected this service on 20 February 2015. This was an unannounced inspection. Our last inspection took place in August 2013 and at that time we found the home was meeting the regulations we looked at.

The service was registered to provide accommodation and personal care for up to five people. People who use the service have a learning disability and/or mental health needs. At the time of our inspection five people were using the service.

The service had a registered manager. 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.

People’s safety was maintained in a manner that promoted their independence. Staff understood how to keep people safe and they helped people to understand risks. People’s medicines were managed safely, which meant people received the medicines they needed when they needed them.

There were sufficient numbers of suitable staff to meet people’s needs and keep people safe. Staff received regular training that provided them with the knowledge and skills to meet people’s needs. The registered manager monitored the staff’s learning and developmental needs.

People could access sufficient amounts of food and drink and specialist diets were catered for. People’s health and wellbeing needs were monitored and people were supported to attend health appointments as required.

People were treated with kindness, compassion and respect and staff promoted people’s independence and right to privacy. Staff supported people to make decisions about their care by helping people to understand the information they needed to make informed decisions.

Staff sought people’s consent before they provided care and support. Staff understood how to ensure decisions were made in people’s best interests if they were unable to make certain decisions about their care. In these circumstances the legal requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) were being followed.

People were involved in the assessment and review of their care and staff supported and encouraged people to access the community and maintain relationships with their families and friends.

Staff sought and listened to people’s views about their care and action was taken to make improvements to care as a result of people’s views and experiences. People understood how to complain about their care and we saw that complaints were managed in accordance with the provider’s complaints procedure.

There was a positive atmosphere within the home and the registered manager and provider regularly assessed and monitored the quality of care to ensure standards were met and maintained. The registered manager understood the requirements of their registration with us and they and the provider kept up to date with changes in health and social care regulation.

During our inspection we spoke with five people who used the service, two members of care staff and the registered manager. People told us they were happy with their care. One person told us, “I love it here”.

People told us they were involved in the planning of their care and the running of the home. One person told us, “We think the living room needs decorating, so we talked about how we want it to be decorated at one meeting. We haven’t definitely decided yet though. We are still thinking about it”.

We saw that staff were responsive to people’s needs and people received support in a caring manner. Staff understood people’s needs because people’s needs had been effectively assessed, planned and recorded.

We saw that people chose the food they ate, and people told us they had access to food and drink when they required it.

People told us they felt safe living at Mimosa, and staff were aware of the procedures in place to keep people safe.

The service was well led because the registered manager and provider regularly assessed and monitored the quality of the care and support they provided.

We carried out this inspection as part of our schedule of inspections to check on the care and welfare of people who used this service. The visit was unannounced, which meant that the registered provider and the staff did not know we were inspecting.

We spoke with three people, one member of staff and the manager. People who used the service told us that they liked living in the home.

People we spoke with were positive about living at Mimosa, they were able to have free access to all areas of their home and participate in household tasks if they chose to. We saw that people were supported to make decisions and were involved in the planning of their care. We saw people's capacity to make decisions had been assessed.

We saw that the care records contained all the information that staff needed to enable them to support people in a way that was consistent and ensured their safety.

Medication was appropriately managed, stored and recorded.

We saw that staff had the required knowledge and skills to provide the level of care that people required. Recruitment procedures ensured that new staff were suitable to work with vulnerable people.

People who used the service told us that they knew how to make a complaint if they needed to, but said that they were happy with the support they received.

We carried out this inspection because we had not visited the service for some time and we did not have enough information about the service to assess compliance. We visited the service to see what life was like for the people who lived in the home and to ensure that they received safe care and support.

During our visit we observed how staff and users of the service interacted and talked to people about the things they did and what they liked about the service.

People we spoke with told us, "I like the staff here, they listen and help us. I can go to any of the staff and know they will listen."

People were involved in planning their own care. Care plans identified their individual needs and provided information on how these needs would be met. Risk management plans were in place to try and keep people safe.

The staff encouraged and supported people to be as independent as possible. Everyone was supported to plan their meals, do their own shopping and to make their own meals. People were supported to keep their accommodation clean and tidy.

People receive support from staff but information in records indicated that they can't be sure that staff have received training to meet their needs.