This comprehensive inspection took place on 27, 29 March and 18 April 2018 and was announced on each day. This was the first inspection of the service at the current registered location.

This service provides care and support to people living in 17 ‘supported living’ settings, so that they can live 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.

Wakefield Regional Office provides a supported living service for people with a learning disability, some of whom have additional disabilities. Each supported living home is situated in a residential area, within walking distance of shops and local amenities. The homes are located around Pontefract, Wakefield and Castleford and accommodate between two to five people.

There was a registered manager in place. 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 received good care and support and they were encouraged to lead lives in line with their own preferences and choices. The emphasis was on supporting people to be as independent as possible. People were involved in making decisions about their care and how the service was run.

Care and support plans contained clear and up to date information and were person-centred. There was clear and specific information about how to support people with personal care, whilst promoting dignity and respect.

People were supported in having their day to day health needs met. Health services such as dentists, doctors and opticians were used as required and there were close links with other services such as the local Community Learning Disability Team.

Staff were knowledgeable about the needs of each person and how they preferred to live their lives. Staff received the training they needed and were supported through regular supervision meetings with a manager. There were safe recruitment practices in place for new staff and there were a sufficient number of staff on duty to meet people’s needs.

There were robust systems in place to keep people safe. Staff were confident about their responsibilities in relation to safeguarding and also knew who they could contact regarding any concerns they had about the service.

There was a positive approach to risk taking so that people could be as independent as possible. Risks in peoples’ day to day lives had been identified and measures put in place to keep people safe. The focus was on how each person benefited from the activity undertaken.

Supported living homes were suitable for the people who used the service. Checks and tests were carried out regularly to make sure the environment was safe.

The legislative requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) were followed.

Staff told us that the service was well managed and that the provider was involved with the service. The registered manager promoted a culture of respect, involvement and independence. There were good systems in place to make sure that the quality of care was maintained. Areas that required improvement were identified and necessary action taken.