We inspected Sussex Care Services on 23rd March 2016. The service provided support to people living in their own accommodation within four communal houses in Brighton and Hove. The service supported 30 people on the day of our inspection. The service provided support to people with mental health issues and used the Recovery Star which is a tool that measures change and supports recovery by providing a map of the person’s journey to recovery, it is a way of plotting the person’s progress and planning actions. The service aimed to support people for 18 months before people moved to more independent living arrangements. People received care and support at four separate locations across the city. The Care Quality Commission inspects the care and support the service provides, but does not inspect the accommodation people live in.

This inspection was announced which meant people, the registered manager and staff knew we were coming shortly before we visited the service. The provider was given notice because there are different locations with staff providing support for adults who are often out during the day. There is a main office from which the service is managed and we needed to be sure that someone would be in and people would be available to talk with us.

A new manager had started in post in November 2015 and was in the process of registering with the Care Quality Commission. ‘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 told us they felt safe and were happy with the support they received from Sussex Care Services. One person told us, “I feel safe, the staff are good”. People were safe as they were supported by staff that were trained in safeguarding adults at risk procedures and knew how to recognise signs of abuse. People were supported to manage their medicines safely. Accidents and incidents had been recorded and appropriate action had been taken and recorded by the registered manager.

We saw people were supported by staff that knew them well, gave them individual attention and looked at providing additional assistance as and when required. Staff received training to support them with their role on a continuous basis to ensure they could meet people’s needs effectively.

Staff, the registered manager and locality managers were knowledgeable about the Mental Capacity Act 2005. They were aware this legislation protected the rights of people who lacked capacity to make decisions about their care and welfare.

The staff team were responsive to people’s social needs and supported people to maintain and foster interests and relationships that were important to them. People were central to the practices involved in the planning and reviews of their support and guided by the Recovery Star Model which places the person at the centre of their care. People were encouraged to be as independent as possible and to plan to move to a more independent living arrangement. A staff member said “Everything is about the client; we’re really good at being flexible and responsive to people’s needs and wants”.

People received regular assessments of their needs and any identified risks. Records were maintained in relation to people’s healthcare, for example when people were supported with making or attending GP appointments.

People told us that staff were kind and caring. One person told us about staff, "They care, they let you get on but are there for support ". A relative we spoke with said of staff “I have nothing but good things to say about them”. We observed staff treating people with dignity and respect and involving them in their care.

The service was well led and had good leadership and direction from the registered manager. Staff