Penfold Lodge provides accommodation and personal care for up to 18 people with mental health needs whose primary needs are for emotional support and care. The service supports people through the recovery process to enable them, where possible, to move on and live more independently. There were 14 people in the service when we inspected on 19 September 2016 plus one person moving in that day. This was an unannounced inspection.

There was a registered manager in post. The manager was also the provider of 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 atmosphere within the service was relaxed and welcoming and there was a positive, inclusive and open culture. The ethos of care was person-centred and valued each person as an individual. People were treated with kindness, dignity, respect and understanding.

People, relatives and healthcare professionals gave positive feedback about the staff and management team. Staff were provided with the training they needed to meet people's needs and preferences effectively. There were sufficient numbers of staff to meet people’s needs and recruitment processes checked the suitability of staff to work in the service.

Care plans were unique, person centred and reflected the care and support that each person required and preferred to meet their assessed needs, promote their health and wellbeing and enhance their quality of life.

People, staff and healthcare professionals expressed confidence in the leadership of the service. Staff were encouraged to be involved all aspects of people’s care which helped to promote a positive culture within the service and ensured staff were always aware of people’s current needs.

People were empowered to have choice, independence and control. Staff promoted people’s independence by being aware of their capabilities and encouraged people to do things for themselves, giving support where needed.

The continued review of people’s support needs showed that the service was continually striving to improve on the support they provided, in order to enhance people’s quality of life. The result of this was that people and their relatives could be reassured that they were receiving responsive and effective care which was always provided with compassion, dignity and respect.

People presented as relaxed and at ease in their surroundings and told us that they felt safe. Staff knew how to minimise risks and provide people with safe care. Procedures were in place which safeguarded the people who used the service from the potential risk of abuse. People knew how to raise concerns and were confident that any concerns would be listened and responded to.

People were provided with their medicines when they needed them and in a safe manner. People were prompted, encouraged and reassured as they took their medicines and given the time they needed.

Staff understood the importance of gaining people’s consent to the support they were providing. The management team and staff understood their responsibility to comply with the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS).

During our inspection we spoke with three people who used the service. We talked with three members of staff. The detailed evidence that supports our findings can be read in the full report.

Is the service safe?

Staff had received a range of training to protect people from harm. Safeguarding of vulnerable adults from abuse (SOVA), Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) training were completed every year. Staff we spoke with told us that they were aware of the action they would take if they suspected abuse was or had taken place. They were also aware of what it meant to deprive someone of their liberty and why this was sometimes necessary.

We found that the service had suitable arrangements in place to gain people's consent to and assess people's mental capacity to make decisions should they not be able to consent to their care.

The policy, procedures and quality monitoring of the service included health and safety checks and reviews of care planning and delivery. These were comprehensive and ensured people lived in a safe environment with safe care.

Is the service effective?

People were satisfied with the care and support they received. This was consistent with the positive feedback received from people as reported in the provider's own quality assurance survey. All of the staff we spoke with were knowledgeable about individual people's care needs, and this knowledge was consistent with the care plans in place.

Is the service caring?

People were supported by kind and attentive staff. We saw that staff showed patience and gave encouragement when supporting people. People commented, “I never feel rushed by the staff that help me, they don’t do everything for me and help me to do things for myself." We spoke with three people who used the service. One person said to us, "I like living here I have been here for many years." We observed the care and attention people received from staff. All interactions we saw were appropriate, respectful and friendly and there was a relaxed atmosphere throughout the service.

Is the service responsive?

We saw that care plans and risk assessments were informative, up to date and regularly reviewed. The registered manager responded in an open, thorough and timely manner to complaints. This meant that people could be assured that complaints were investigated and action was taken as necessary. Staff told us the manager was approachable and they would have no difficulty speaking to them if they had any concerns about the home.

Is the service well led?

Staff said that they felt well supported by the manager, there was a positive sense of the team working together and they were able do their jobs safely. The provider had a range of quality monitoring systems in place to ensure that care was being delivered appropriately by staff.

Three people we spoke with during our visit made positive comments about living at Penfold Lodge. One person told us about the community meetings in the home which were led by people using the service. They said: “It gives us a voice and things here have improved immensely.” People told us that they were able to make decisions

We found that staff received the training they needed to provide care and support safely. Staff were able to demonstrate that they understood the specific needs of the people using the service. We saw that staff treated people with respect.

Penfold Lodge was well managed and the registered manager had put robust systems and processes in place to ensure people received a good service that took into account their needs and preferences. The process to monitor the quality of the service ensured they listened to people and acted upon the feedback they received.

Four people spoken with during our visit were highly complimentary about the service provided at Penfold Lodge. They told us that they were supported to take part in a variety of social activities and they enjoyed the lifestyle in the home. They made positive comments about the management team and the staff who supported them. One person told us they had, "never lived anywhere better."

A healthcare professional told us the staff, "Are knowledgeable about people's issues and are proactive in contacting [healthcare professionals] when support is needed." They told us that people were progressing and their conditions were "well managed."

We saw that relatives had sent complimentary letters to the home, praising the standard of care, the staff and the improvements that had been made by the manager.