Vicarage Road is registered to provide accommodation and care for a maximum of six adults who have autism and/or learning disabilities. At the time of our inspection there were five people living in the home.

The registered manager had been in post since 2010. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have a legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

There were systems in place to ensure that people lived and worked in a safe environment. Risks to people’s health and wellbeing were identified and mitigated. Detailed risk assessments informed staff of how to minimise the risk of harm to people. There was consistently enough staff on duty to safely support people with their care needs. There were safe practices around staff recruitment in order to recruit suitable staff to work in the home.

Accidents and incidents were recorded and reported appropriately. Root cause analysis was carried out to learn from incidents and highlight any action that the manager needed to take.

Medicines were managed, stored and administered safely and people received their medicines as prescribed. Staff’s competency in the administration of medicines was regularly reviewed.

People were supported by staff who were skilled and knowledgeable in their role. A comprehensive induction was completed by all staff and staff were able to access training to support people with their specific support needs. Staff were further supported through regular supervisions and annual appraisals.

Staff had an understanding of the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and how to support people who lacked capacity to make some decisions. The service had identified that some people may need to be deprived of their liberty to keep them safe. Applications had been made to the authorising body to ensure that people were protected. Staff supported people to make choices about their care and day to day activities.

Prompt and timely referrals were made to relevant healthcare professionals where there were concerns about a person’s health or wellbeing. Guidance from professionals was reflected in people’s support plans. People were able to choose what they wanted to eat and drink and they were supported to maintain a sufficient dietary intake.

People were supported by caring staff who treated people according to their individual needs and preferences. People were treated with respect and dignity and their right to privacy was upheld.

Detailed support plans and care records were written with people so their views and preferences could be sought in every aspect of their life. Support plans and risk assessments were reviewed and updated regularly to reflect people’s most current support needs.

Staff supported people to maintain their independence by encouraging people to pursue their interests and get involved in daily household tasks. People were able to have relatives and friends visit them and visits home and to family occasions were facilitated by staff.

Complaints were dealt with appropriately and in a timely manner. People felt able to raise a complaint if needed.

The service was well run and the manager was approachable. They maintained open and frequent communication with people and the staff who worked in the home.

There were systems in place to monitor and assess the quality of the service being delivered. The manager carried out regular audits, as did the provider’s quality assurance manager. Remedial action was taken in response to any findings from the audits.

We spoke with five people who used the service. Everyone spoke positively about the staff and about the support which they received. One person said,”I like everything here and all the staff are good.”

The people we spoke with told us about a wide variety of activities which they were involved with outside of the home and they were very enthusiastic and happy when telling us about all the things that they were involved with.

We spoke with two members of staff. Both told us that they felt well supported by the management team and enjoyed working at the service.They both told us that they had undertaken training which helped them to support the people living at Vicarage Road.

We saw that people were offered healthy and nutritious meals. We saw from the support plans that people’s individual needs had been assessed.The staff understood how to support those people who had special dietary needs.

We observed that staff were able to safely administer medication and that they followed the appropriate policies and procedures.

The provider had a clear complaints procedure in place and we saw that this procedure had been followed. Both people who used the service and visitors knew how to make a complaint.

We met and spoke with one person who was living in Vicarage Road. This person told us that they liked peace and quiet and didn't want to talk much.

The person told us that there were weekly meetings in the home and that they talked about lots of things, including behaviours.

This person also told us that they liked going to the café on their own, doing horticulture and enjoyed the gardening group.

The person we spoke with gave us permission to look at their support plan and told us that they knew what was in it.

The person gave a positive response when we asked if they were supported well and nodded when we asked if the staff were good.

This person also gave a positive response when we asked if they felt safe living in Vicarage Road.

People told us that they liked living in the home and got on well with the staff who worked there. While we were visiting, one person said to a staff member, "I'm proud of you." Another told us that there had been some changes over the years and that, "It is ok now. I like it."