The Regard Partnership – Grove Road is a care home for nine people with learning disabilities. There were eight people living in the home at the time of our visit. Some people had limited verbal communication.

When we last visited the home on 22 October 2014 the service was meeting the regulations we looked at and was rated ‘Good’ overall and in all five key questions.

At this inspection we found the service continued to be rated ‘Good’.

People’s medicines were managed safely and they received them as per their prescriptions. Staff understood how to respond if they suspected people were being abused to keep them safe and had received training in this. The registered manager managed risks to people and the premises and equipment well. The provider used robust recruitment procedures to ensure staff were suitable to work with people. There were enough staff deployed to meet people’s needs.

Staff were well supported by the provider as they received the training, supervision and appraisal they needed to undertake their roles. Staff understood the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and where people needed to be deprived of their liberty the registered manager applied for authorisations to keep people safe under the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) appropriately. People received choice in food and drink they received. People had access to the healthcare services they required to maintain their health.

Staff knew the people they were supporting well including the best ways to communicate with them. Staff treated people with dignity and respect and encouraged them to be as independent as they wanted to be. Staff encouraged people to make decisions and plan their own care.

Each person had an individualised activity programme which meant they took part in activities they were interested in. People had care plans which they were involved in developing and which were reviewed regularly to keep them an accurate tool for staff to rely on in caring for people. A complaints procedure was in place and complaints were used to improve the service.

A registered manager was in place who had a good understanding of their role and responsibilities, as did staff. Thorough quality audits were in place to assess, monitor and improve the service. The registered manager and provider encouraged communication with people, relatives and staff well through a variety of means such as meetings, questionnaires and newsletters.

The provider continued to meet all the fundamental standards at this location. Further information is in the detailed findings section of the report.

This unannounced inspection took place on 22 October 2014. When we last visited the home on the 8 October 2013 we found the service was meeting the regulations we looked at.

Grove Road is a residential care home that provides accommodation and personal care for up to nine people with learning disabilities. Some of the people living at the home, also had dementia care needs.

At the time of our visit, there were eight people living at Grove Road.

The service had 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 using the service told us they felt safe. Staff were knowledgeable in recognising signs of potential abuse and followed the required reporting procedures.

Staff received regular training, support and were knowledgeable about their roles and responsibilities in caring for people living at Grove Road. The provider had made sure staff had sufficient skills and experience to do their job effectively. People were supported to eat and drink. Staff supported people to attend healthcare appointments and liaised with their GP and other healthcare professionals as required to meet people’s needs.

People’s needs were assessed and plans put into place so their needs could be met. This included people’s health needs and making sure they stayed well. People were involved in writing their own plans and reviewing them so they were getting the care they wanted and the information was always kept up to date.

People were encouraged to be as independent as possible. There was a range of activities for people to participate in, if they wanted to. People we spoke with knew how to make a complaint if they were not happy with the service they or their relative was receiving.

The manager was approachable. People and staff we spoke with told us the manager listened to their views and acted on them. The manager and the provider undertook spot checks to make sure that people using the service received a good standard of care to meet their needs.

We spoke to four people who used the service, one told us "I like it here."

We saw that staff spoke to people in a kind and courteous manner, addressing them politely and using their preferred names. Staff knocked before entering people's bedrooms demonstrating respect for their privacy.

We saw records of four people who used the service which were accurate and up to date. We saw that where it had been possible people had signed their care plans giving consent for their care and other support required. We observed positive interactions between staff and people who used the service.

We saw that people looked well cared for and they appeared relaxed and happy. The premises were welcoming and had a number of communal areas for people to use. All bedrooms were single occupancy. We saw three bedrooms and noted that these were in good decorative order.

Staff told us there were good training opportunities; they enjoyed their work and felt well supported by the manager. We reviewed staff training records and they were up to date.

The manager told us that there were regular reviews of people's care plans on a monthly basis. We saw up to date examples of these in pictorial presentation which were signed by the person who used the service and their nominated key worker.

The staff monitored and checked that the quality of services provided met the expected standards. This included involving relatives and people who used the service.

We asked two people who were able to verbally communicate with us what they liked about living at Grove Road. One person told us, ‘I enjoy it……I can iron’, another person said, ‘I’ve got friends, I go to aqua, Rangers and I do keep fit’.

To help us to understand the experiences of the other seven people who were unwilling or unable to communicate verbally with a stranger, we used our SOFI (Short Observational Framework for Inspection) tool. The SOFI tool allows us to spend time watching what is going on in a service and helps us to record how people spend their time.

Most people told us or we observed that they had high levels of well being. There was a lot of interaction with staff, and a warm and friendliness between the groups. The home was lively with many comings and goings; people who use the service arrived back from activities or were getting ready to go out. Relatives were also popping in

In general, people who live at Grove Road are happy with being there.

People who use the service feel that they are listened to and that their views will be acted upon; they have confidence to talk to the staff and the manager. People like the fact that they can visit relatives when they want, or that people can visit them. The home has a lively atmosphere with people involved in a lot of activities.

People who use the service also like the fact that they can keep pets if they want to, and when those pets do eventually die, they can be remembered and that a space can be found for them in the home’s garden.

The service has a new manager who has already identified areas within the home where improvements could be made. The manager, once her probation period is over will become registered with the Commission, so that continued improvements can be maintained.

We would like to thank everyone at Grove Road for their time and co-operation during the inspection