Alan Atchison 5 and 6 Augusta Close is a 'care home'. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a 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 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 living in the home can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.

Alan Atchison 5 and 6 Augusta Close is registered to accommodate up to nine people with learning disabilities. The service is located on the edge of the city of Peterborough in the area of Parnwell. The service is divided into two houses next door to each other. One house has five bedrooms for the people residing there; the other house has four bedrooms and a bedroom for the member of staff who was employed to sleep in the service overnight. Communication between the two houses at night is via an intercom system. Shops and other amenities are a short walk from the service.

At our last inspection in April 2016 we rated the home ‘good’. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of ‘good’ and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the home has not changed since our last inspection.

This inspection was completed on 13 November 2018 and there were nine people living in the home at the time of the inspection.

A registered manager was in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the home. 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 home is run. The registered manager understood their responsibilities in relation to notifying CQC of certain events that happened at the home.

People continued to be kept as safe as possible because staff understood their roles and responsibilities in relation to keeping people safe from harm and abuse. Potential risks to people had been recognised and information on how to minimise risks had been recorded as guidance for staff to follow. People received their prescribed medicines, which were managed safely. There were enough staff on duty with the right mix of skills to meet people’s support needs.

People continued to receive an effective service because their needs were met by staff who were well trained and supported to do their job. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff support them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service support this practice. People's nutritional needs were met by staff who knew each person's needs well. People’s health and wellbeing was maintained and they had access to a range of health and social care professionals.

People continued to receive good care because staff treated people with kindness, compassion, dignity and respect. People had choices in all aspects of their daily lives and were able to continue with interests, activities and friendships outside the home. Staff ensured people remained as independent as possible.

People continued to receive a service that was responsive. People and their relatives (where agreed) were involved in their personalised support plans and reviews. The information about them in relation to their care and support was up to date. People were encouraged to take part in a range of activities that they enjoyed and were the choice of the person at that time. This helped promote social inclusion. Information was in place to sup

Alan Atchison – 5 and 6 Augusta Close is registered to provide accommodation for up to nine people with learning disabilities who require personal care. At the time of our inspection there were nine people living in the service. The service is located on the edge of the city of Peterborough in the area of Parnwell. The service is divided into two houses next door to each other. One house has five bedrooms for the people residing there; the other house has four bedrooms and a bedroom for the member of staff who was employed to sleep in the service overnight. Communication between the two houses at night is via an intercom system. Shops and other amenities are a short walk from the service.

This announced inspection took place on 28 April 2016.

The service had a registered manager in post. 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 legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the scheme is run.

People had their needs assessed and reviewed so that staff knew how to meet their support needs. People’s support plans were completed and reviewed with them.

The risk of harm for people was reduced because staff knew how to recognise and report abuse. There was a sufficient number of staff to meet the support needs of people living in the service. Satisfactory pre-employment checks were completed before staff were employed to care for people in the service.

People were supported to be as safe as possible because assessments had been completed for all risks and how they were managed. This meant staff had the information they needed to reduce risks.

The CQC monitors the operation of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) which applies to care services. Staff were trained in the principles of the MCA and DoLS and could describe how people would be supported to make best interest decisions if necessary.

People were supported to take their medicines as prescribed and medicines were safely managed.

An induction process was in place to support new staff and further training was provided to ensure all staff had the necessary expertise to meet people’s needs.

People had sufficient food and drink of their choice throughout the day. People were supported by kind, caring and happy staff. People’s privacy and dignity was respected by staff.

A range of audit and quality assurance procedures were in place. These were used as a means of identifying areas for improvement and also where good practice had been established. Information to assess the quality of the service was gained through residents’ meetings, quality questionnaires and staff meetings.

Our review of records and observations evidenced to us that people were only provided with care and support, including medicines administration that they had provided a valid consent and agreement to. Staff who we spoke with understood the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and where a decision about people's care was in their best interests.

Our review of people's plans of care demonstrated to us that people's care was person centred and based upon their most up-to-date needs. People were supported to maintain and improve their independence where this was safe to do so.

The provider ensured that statutory inspections and maintenance was completed where this required. We saw that a weekly health and safety check had been completed and identified where repairs were required.

From our review of records we found that staff received a regular supervision and annual appraisal to support them in their role. Staff were able to gain additional health care qualifications where this was required or where this had been requested.

Our review of records demonstrated to us that the provider had an up-to-date complaints policy and process. People were supported to comment or complain if they needed assistance. Relatives told us that they had never had cause to complain.

During our visit on 19 September 2012 we spoke with three people living in the home. One person who we spoke with said, "I have several jobs, I get to go to work where I like and I use the bus to get there." Another person said, "I like to take my turn to cook tea on a Friday".

5-6 Augusta Close provided a very flexible home for people to live and offered many different opportunities for activities that people could choose to do. The manager ensured that people were offered every opportunity to better themselves. We saw that people were engaged doing local community work. One person said, "I have been at work all day, I love recycling and making things from old pallets".

Another person said, "I get much better care here than where I previously lived, everybody here is lovely".