This inspection took place on 12 October 2016 and was an unannounced inspection. It was carried out by one adult social care inspector.

The last inspection of the service was carried out on 6 January 2014. No concerns were identified with the care being provided to people at that inspection.

3a Grosvenor Road provides accommodation and support with personal care for up to three adults. The home specialises in providing care to adults who have a learning disability. The home is staffed 24 hours a day.

At the time of our inspection there were three people living at the home. The people we met with had very complex needs and were not able to tell us about their experiences of life at the home. We therefore used our observations of care and our discussions with staff to help form our judgements.

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 were supported by a caring staff team who knew them well. Staff morale was good and there was a happy and relaxed atmosphere in the home. In a recent satisfaction survey a relative commented “[Name of person] is very lucky to be looked after by the staff at Grosvenor Road” and “The observation and care is brilliant.”

Routines in the home were flexible and were based around the needs and preferences of the people who lived there. People were able to plan their day with staff and they were supported to access social and leisure activities in the home and local community.

The home was a safe place for people. There were sufficient staff to meet people’s needs. Staff understood people’s needs and provided the care and support they needed.

Staff knew how to recognise and report abuse. They had received training in safeguarding adults from abuse and they knew the procedures to follow if they had concerns.

People’s health care needs were monitored and met. People received good support from health and social care professionals. Staff were skilled at communicating with people, especially if people were unable to communicate verbally.

People were unable to look after their own medicines. Staff made sure medicines were stored securely and there were sufficient supplies of medicines. People received their medicines when they needed them.

People were always asked for their consent before staff assisted them with any tasks and staff knew the procedures to follow to make sure people’s legal and human rights were protected.

There were effective systems in place to monitor and improve the quality of the service provided.

During our inspection we spoke with one person who uses the service and three members of staff. They were the registered manager, a senior support worker and a support worker. We looked at surveys and records to help us understand the views of the people who use the service.

One person who uses the service told us “I am going on holiday in June and I go every year, I like it here”.

Staff we spoke with enjoyed working at 3a Grosvenor Road. One person told us “we are a great team and communicate well”. Another member of staff told us “we give great 1:1 support to the people who live here”. If staff needed support or development they felt their manager was approachable and helpful.

Comments from a recent relative survey read “I find the staff are always helpful, keen to please and very polite”. Another comment read “I could not wish for anything better for my brother, staff are excellent and he always seems very happy”.

We also looked at support plans, risk assessments, staff records and surveys.

There were three people living in the home at the time of the visit. People that we spent time with indicated that they were happy living in the home.

Two people that did express an opinion, indicated to us that they were happy living in the home, that they liked the staff supporting them and had choices in what they wanted to do.

There were processes in place to support people to make informed choices about their care and support wherever possible.

Each person living in the home had a detailed plan of care in place that included people’s individual needs and wishes and also recorded people's physical and emotional healthcare needs.

The home’s staff worked with a variety of healthcare professionals including mental health and the learning disability teams and referrals were promptly made to specialist services where relevant.

We spoke with staff and reviewed records which showed us that people were protected from abuse and their care was planned and delivered in a safe manner.

Comments we received from a family member included. “All I can say is two words, brilliant and excellent. They know X well and he knows them. They keep me up to date with everything and bring him half way so that we are able to meet.”

Another family member told us. “I would give the staff ten out of ten, there is a stable staff team and they are dedicated and experienced.”

During our visit, we found that people living in the home were settled and content, their assessed needs were being met and they were clearly well cared for.

We were told that, in accordance with their identified wishes and individual support plans, people are encouraged and enabled, as far as practicable, to make choices about their daily lives.

From our observations and discussions, it was clear that staff knew the people who lived in the home well and had a sound understanding and awareness of their care and support needs. We observed staff treating people with dignity and respect and displaying patience and understanding whilst supporting them.