About the service:

Riverside provides accommodation, care and support for up to nine people who experience learning disabilities and/or autistic spectrum disorder. There were nine people living at Riverside on the day of the inspection visit.

The service worked within the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensured that people could live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence.

People’s experience of using this service:

• People received safe and effective care.

• People were involved in planning and reviewing the care and support they received.

• People were supported to develop their independence whilst remaining safe.

• Staff knew how to recognise and report issues of concern and potential abuse.

• Staff were well trained and supported to provide personalised care.

• Staff understood people’s choices and preferences and how to support them with decision making.

• The registered manager promoted a culture of openness and partnership working in which everyone’s views and opinions were respected.

• There were clear systems in place to monitor the quality of the services provided and actions were taken to improve services when any shortfalls were identified.

Rating at last inspection:

Riverside was last inspected on 12 May 2016 (report published 28/06/2016) and was rated good overall.

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection based on the rating at the last inspection. Riverside remained rated good overall.

Follow up:

We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about Seaton House until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.

We inspected Riverside 12 May 2016. The inspection was unannounced.

Riverside provides accommodation and personal care for up to nine people who experience needs related to learning disabilities. It is a purpose built home situated in Louth, Lincolnshire and is within easy reach of public transport and shops. Nine people were living in the home on the day of our inspection.

There was a registered manager in post at the time of the inspection. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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.

CQC is required by law to monitor the operation of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and to report on what we find. DoLS are in place to protect people where they do not have capacity to make decisions and where it is considered

necessary to restrict their freedom in some way, usually to protect themselves. During the inspection we found the registered manager had acted in accordance with this legislation and people’s rights had been protected.

People were supported to stay safe by staff who understood how to report and manage any concerns for their safety and welfare. People’s medicines were managed safely and they were helped to avoid the risk of accidents occurring, whilst maintaining their independence.

People were supported to access appropriate healthcare services and their nutritional needs and wishes were met.

People were treated with kindness and dignity and their privacy was maintained. They were involved in planning and reviewing the support they received. Their decisions and choices about their life and the support they received were respected by staff.

There were enough staff employed with the appropriate skills and knowledge to provide the support that people wanted and needed. People were confident that staff knew how to support them appropriately.

People were encouraged to enjoy a range of hobbies and social activities. They were supported to maintain relationships that were important to them.

Systems to monitor and improve the quality of services people received were in place. People views and opinions about the quality of the services were taken into account.

We looked at three people’s care records which included their care plans, risk assessments and health plans. These were clear, person-centred, detailed and provided up to date information on how their diverse needs should be met.

People’s rooms were personalised and they were surrounded by their own possessions. People were issued with keys to their rooms if they wished to lock them.

We looked at the menus and saw they offered a wide range of hot and cold meals. We were told discussions took place between staff and people who lived at the home to promote awareness of nutrition and hydration.

The service had a copy of the local authority policies and procedures for safeguarding vulnerable people. The registered manager told us all staff attended safeguarding awareness training. We asked one person who lived at the home if they felt safe, they replied, "Yes, I am very safe here."

We looked around the home and observed a good overall standard of cleanliness. We saw people’s rooms were clean and communal areas were clean and tidy. The home was free from mal odour.

We reviewed the staff rotas. We saw one care worker, known as a house parent, and the registered manager were on duty throughout the day. The member of staff we spoke with told us there was a handover period with the night staff both in the morning and evening so that medication could be administered by two house parents.

We spoke with five people who used the service. They told us they were well looked after and staff were caring. One person told us, "I like living here with my friends." We found care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that was intended to ensure people’s safety and welfare. One person told us they had been to Blackpool and really enjoyed it. Another person helped at a local cafe.

We found the provider has taken steps to provide care in an environment that was suitably designed and adequately maintained. We saw people who used the service had bedrooms which were personalised to meet their individual choices.

People were cared for, or supported by, suitably qualified, skilled and experienced staff. We observed good interactions and found people who used the service were relaxed and happy in the care of the staff.

We saw the complaints procedure was available to people who used and visited the service. People told us they had no complaints but felt comfortable taking any concerns to staff. One person commented, “I am happy here, the staff are very nice, we do lots of activities.”