Willowcroft is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The care home accommodated up to seven people in an adapted ordinary family style residential property. The care service was 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 using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.

The provider’s website stated that people staying at Willowcroft may have mental health needs, a learning disability or an acquired brain injury. There were six people receiving care and support at the home at the time of our visit.

At the last inspection, the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

A registered manager was 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.

Procedures were in place to protect people from harm and staff knew how to use them to keep people safe. There were processes in place to manage risks in relation to the running of the service, prevention of infection and the recruitment of staff. There were enough staff to meet people’s needs. People had support to manage their medicines safely.

People continued to have their needs assessed and met. Staff received training and support to ensure they had appropriate skills to carry out their roles well. People had sufficient to eat and drink and had support to receive care across different services to promote their health and wellbeing. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service support this practice.

Staff members knew those they supported well and respected their privacy and dignity. People were encouraged to be as independent as they felt able to be. People received support to identify and achieve goals in their lives including educational and personal aspirations. People and their relatives were encouraged to raise any issues. The management team had systems in place to address any concerns or complaints.

People had regular contact with the registered manager. Staff received support and guidance from a management team who they found approachable. People and staff felt able to express their views and felt their opinions mattered. The provider had systems in place to monitor the quality of support given and to make changes when needed.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

This inspection took place on 17 November 2015.

Willowcroft provides accommodation for up to seven people who are living with mental health issues or acquired brain injury. There were six people living in the service on the day of our inspection, but only four were at home during our visit.

There was 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.

Staff had the necessary skills and knowledge to meet people’s assessed needs safely. Staff were well trained and supported. There were sufficient staff who had been recruited safely to ensure that they were fit to work with people.

People told us that they felt safe and comfortable living at Willowcroft. Staff had a good understanding of how to protect people from the risk of harm. They had been trained and had access to guidance and information to support them in maintaining good practice.

Risks to people’s health and safety had been assessed and the service had support plans and risk assessments in place to ensure people were cared for safely. People received their medication as prescribed and there were safe systems in place for receiving, administering and disposing of medicines.

The manager and staff had an understanding of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) 2005 and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) but had not had the need to make any applications. The Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) provides a legal framework for making particular decisions on behalf of people who may lack the mental capacity to do so for themselves. The Act requires that as far as possible people make their own decisions and are helped to do so when needed. When they lack mental capacity to take particular decisions, any made on their behalf must be in their best interests and as least restrictive as possible. DoLS are a code of practice to supplement the main Mental Capacity Act 2005. These safeguards protect the rights of adults by ensuring that if there are restrictions on their freedom and liberty these are assessed by appropriately trained professionals.

People were supported to have sufficient amounts of food and drink to meet their needs. People’s care needs had been assessed and catered for. The support plans provided staff with good information about how to meet people’s individual needs, understand their preferences and how to care for them safely. The service monitored people’s healthcare needs and sought advice and guidance from healthcare professionals when needed.

Staff were kind and caring and treated people respectfully. People participated in a range of activities that met their needs. Families were made to feel welcome and people were able to receive their visitors at a time of their choosing. Staff ensured that people’s privacy and dignity was maintained at all times.

There were systems in place to monitor the quality of the service and to deal with any complaints or concerns.

We found that people experienced care, treatment and support that met their needs and protected their rights. One person's relative told us, "The staff are amazing, they go above and beyond what they are paid to do."

Before people received any care or treatment they were asked to provide their consent to the support they needed and records showed the provider acted in accordance with their wishes. One person who used the service told us, "My keyworker and I meet regularly, we discuss my options and they have their opinion, but it's always me who makes the decision."

The home was suitably maintained and the provider carried out a range of audits to ensure that emergency equipment was safe to use. . Due to people using medications that may cause drowsiness we saw each person had an individual evacuation plan in place so that they would be able to leave the building in the event of an emergency.

Staff received appropriate development and supervision to assist them in their role and told us they felt supported by their line manager. One member of staff we spoke with told us, “The manager will talk to us about how we feel, ask us for our comments, and they feed back to us their thoughts. In my last supervision we discussed a further qualification.”

During our previous inspection on 04 January 2013 we found the one person's care records were incomplete. During our inspection on 24 July 2013 we saw the provider had made improvements.

We spoke with two of the five people currently residing at Willowcroft. They liked the fact that the home was located near shopping areas as they enjoyed being part of the local community.

One person said, "This is the best place I have been in. Staff are more like friends." Other comments included, "You get help from staff."

We found that people were involved in care planning as much as possible. Some people had legal restrictions placed on what they could do. We saw evidence that people were aware of any restrictions and these had been discussed with them. We noted that people who used the service lacked the opportunity to make written comment and sign their care plans and reviews.

People's existing skills were encouraged as well as learning new self help skills such as using the laundry, shopping and preparing communal meals and interactional skills with staff.

Staff were found to make good judgements regarding adult protection. They were able to recognise abuse and take appropriate action. However, they were not familiar with the local safeguarding procedures.

We saw that staffing levels were maintained consistently and in line with the provider's calculations.

The records were not safely kept in as far as plastic covers holding paper records and personal files were in a poor condition. One care plan was not in place and the identified risks in the assessment information had not been fully actioned.