The inspection took place on 14 September 2018. The registered provider was given short notice of the visit to the office, in line with our current methodology for inspecting domiciliary care agencies.

This service provides care and support to people living in five ‘supported living’ settings, so that they can live in their own home as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support. At the time of our inspection there were 45 people being supported that were receiving personal care.

This was the first inspection of the service since it was registered in July 2017. We have rated the service Good.

The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.

The service had developed a model of care and support provided to those who lived in the supported living services, which underpinned the values of Registering the Right Support. The service was extremely committed to person-centred planning making every effort to assist people to be involved in and understand decisions about their care and support to enhance their self-esteem, quality of life and confidence.

The service was managed by the registered manager. 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 were safe, staff understood the importance of safeguarding vulnerable people. Risks were managed and people were able to take risks as part of an independent lifestyle.

Staffing levels were maintained to ensure that people's care and support needs continued to be met safely and there were safe recruitment processes in place.

People continued to receive their medicines in a safe manner and received good healthcare support. The service supported people to prepare and make meals. Staff told us that meal choice was very much down to the individual.

People’s needs and choices were assessed and mental capacity assessments were undertaken. Peoples best interests were considered and formally documented. However, we found that these did not always clearly conclude the outcome of the decision.

Staff displayed empathy and worked with people and their relatives to understand how best to support them. Potential barriers to communication were addressed through staff's understanding of people's unique communication styles which were detailed in people's care records.

Everyone we spoke with, without exception, said they were very happy about the service being provided. Staff were kind, considerate, resected people and maintained their dignity.

People received individualised, personalised, person centred care that met their needs. People were supported to live fulfilled and meaningful lives.

People were listened to and any complaints received were dealt with following the providers complaints policy and procedure.

A system was in place for checking the quality of the service using audits, satisfaction surveys and meetings. People made their views known through direct discussion with the registered manager and staff or through the complaint and quality monitoring systems. People's privacy and confidentiality were maintained as records were held securely