About the service:

26a Sussex Avenue is a residential care home that was providing care and accommodation to 5 people with complex needs including physical disabilities, learning disabilities and/or autism at the time of the inspection. The service is registered to support 10 people. However, the building had recently been re-modelled in to two bungalows with three bedrooms each and the provider had applied to reduce the maximum occupancy to six people.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

People’s experience of using this service:

The outcomes for people using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support in the following ways, independence was promoted; people were supported to make choices and people were encouraged and supported to access the local community.

Feedback relatives was very positive about the care people received and people were happy living at the service. One relative said, “There is nothing that I would change about the service, I am overjoyed about the support they receive.” People’s privacy and dignity was respected, and staff were kind and caring. People were supported and encouraged to develop their daily living such as cooking, cleaning and greeting visitors to their home.

People were safe living at the service. Risks to people from health conditions and the environment were well managed. Medicines were administered well, and people received their medicines on time and as prescribed.

The support people received was effective and met their needs. People’s needs were assessed, and support plans were updated when appropriate. People were supported to go shopping, make meals and eat and drink safely. People were encouraged to maintain their health and exercise. When people were unwell their health was monitored, and they had access healthcare services when this was needed.

The building was designed and adapted to meet people’s needs and promote independence. The kitchen had been adapted to enable people to access the counters and the sink independently. There were push buttons so that people in wheel chairs could open the doors to their bedrooms and the fire system had both an audible and visual alarm.

There were enough staff to support people and staff were recruited safely. Staff were appropriately managed and supported and had the skills and training the needed.

There was an open and transparent culture at the service. People and their relatives were engaged and involved in planned developments at the service. Staff told us that they enjoyed working there and that they were well supported. Regular checks on the quality of the service was undertaken and lessons were learnt and shared when things went wrong.

Rating at last inspection:

This is the first inspection of this service.

Why we inspected:

This inspection was a scheduled inspection based on when the service registered.

Follow up:

We will visit the service again in the future to check if there are changes to the quality of the service.