About the service:

St Michaels Residential Home is a residential care home in the coastal town of Torquay. The home was providing accommodation and personal care to 10 people with learning disabilities at the time of the inspection.

People’s experience of using this service:

Every person we met was happy and relaxed. People and staff told us they were happy living and working in the home.

There was a homely atmosphere; people showed us the pets they cared for and peoples bedrooms had been personalised.

People were supported to eat and drink, they had choice in what they ate and helped with food preparation where they were able to. People could help themselves to hot and cold drinks throughout the day.

People were supported to access health services promptly. Staff knew people well including their communication needs and could identify when a person was feeling unwell, or in pain or upset.

Care plans were detailed and explained how people liked personal care provided and what activities they enjoyed.

Risks were comprehensively assessed and detailed in instruction for staff. Staff were trained to support people’s specific needs. Medicines were managed safely and safe recruitment practises were followed.

Staff were supported by a caring registered manager who provided them with regular supervision and opportunities to feed ideas into the service and how people were supported.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practise. People told us staff asked them for consent before supporting with care tasks.

People had opportunities to spend their day how they wished, swimming, or shopping or eating out or attending groups or day centres. People helped in the day to day running of the home, some people made their own breakfast and one person supported with the weekly food shop.

Rating at last inspection:

The report from the last inspection was published on 9 August 2016. The home received a Good rating.

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating. We had no previous concerns about this home.

Follow up:

We will maintain regular contact with the service to see how they are doing and have signposted them for further support if they require it. We will maintain our planned inspection schedule but if we receive information of concern we may visit sooner than planned.

St Michaels is registered to provide care and support to up to 10 people with a learning disability.

This unannounced inspection took place on 1 July 2016. At the time of the inspection there were nine people living at the service. The service was last inspected on 19 February 2014 when it met the requirements that were looked at.

A registered manager was employed at 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.

Kind and caring staff ensured people received care and support that was responsive to their needs. Staff ensured people’s privacy and dignity was respected and all personal care was provided in private. People’s care plans gave staff instructions on how their needs were to be met. Staff knew the people living at St Michaels and understood their needs and preferences well.

People were offered choices in all aspects of their lives. People and their relatives were involved in making decisions about care provided by staff.

There were enough staff available to meet people’s needs and support people to take part in activities and outings. There was a regular programme of activities available for people to participate in. People attended local community groups and regularly went on holidays.

People were supported to maintain a healthy balanced diet and had a choice for each meal. Photographs of foods were used to help people make their choice. Staff ensured people’s health care needs were addressed. People were supported to attend healthcare appointments and received visits from healthcare professionals.

Following the inspection we spoke with two healthcare professionals who told us how well people were supported by staff. People's medicines were stored and managed safely and they received their medicines at the times they were prescribed to be given.

People were protected from the risks of abuse. Staff knew how to recognise and report abuse both within the service and to outside agencies. Thorough recruitment procedures ensured the risks of employing unsuitable staff were minimised. People’s human rights were upheld because staff displayed a good understanding of the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and the associated Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS).

Staff received training that helped them meet people’s needs. This included mandatory training such as first aid as well as training more specific to people's needs such as caring for people living with dementia. Staff also received regular supervision to support them in their role. Staff told us the registered manager was very open and approachable.

There were effective quality assurance systems in place to monitor care. Regular audits were undertaken to ensure the quality of care was maintained. The registered provider took an active role within the service and produced regular reports on the quality of care provided.

We spoke to three people who used the service, and all responded positively about the care they received. One person gave the "thumbs up" sign when we asked them how they found living at St Michaels Residential Home.

We saw people relaxing in the living room stroking the pet dogs, and another person had invited a friend to the home for a drink and a chat.

We saw two care plans and noted that there was a high level of detail into the wishes and needs of people who used the service, and clear instructions for staff to follow so that people received the most appropriate care for them.

We spoke to two members of staff who demonstrated in-depth knowledge of the people living at St Michaels Residential Home, and we saw them interacting friendly with people around the home.

This meant that people who used the service were cared for by staff with knowledge and understanding of the care and support they required.

People who use the service understood the care and treatment choices available to them. One person using the service told us they felt they were making decisions about their care and support. They told us that staff were respectful towards them and protected their privacy and dignity.

We looked at four care records, spoke with four members of staff and spoke with one relative. People we spoke with told us that they were satisfied with the care they received. One person said “Staff are good, they look after me". Another person said “They know what I need help with”.

We spoke with four people who used the service. They told us that they would communicate with the manager or a member of staff if they felt unsafe. One person said "The staff treat me well." A relative said "I am confident that all the people living in the home are safe".

Appropriate checks were undertaken before staff began work. We looked at four records and saw that the care staff were subject to a Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check. We also saw that suitable references had been obtained for each member of staff as part of their recruitment process.

We spoke with a relative who told us that they were very pleased with the attitude of staff in the home. They said "The staff are great, I have never had any reason to complain. The home actually feels like my family members home.