We undertook this inspection on 30 January 2017 and 2 February 2017. The inspection was announced. We gave the provider 48 hours’ notice of this inspection to ensure that the registered manager would be available to support us with the inspection.

The service was last inspected in 2013 at their old location and was meeting all of the regulations that were looked at during that time. Since the last inspection the service had re-located to new offices.

BEAM ABA Services provides personal care and support to children and young adults between the ages of two to 23 years with learning disabilities, specialising in supporting children with autistic spectrum disorder. There were 29 children and young adults using the service at the time of the inspection. Care packages were being delivered not only in London but also in Bristol and Manchester with the provider’s main office based in North London.

There was a registered manager in place at the time of the inspection. 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.

BEAM ABA Services work with individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and other complex behavioural needs. Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) therapy aims and supports to bring about meaningful and purposeful change in behaviour and teaches replacement skills and strategies that equip the individual to live a more independent and socially engaged life. The service works with children and young people across early intervention, school, university and transition years.

We received overwhelming positive feedback from parents of children and young adults who were being supported by BEAM ABA Services. They told us how the service had positively impacted on their child’s life and supported them to integrate into day to day life and activities.

Staff were aware of each child or young adult’s individual needs and how they were to meet those needs. Care packages were tailor made to each specific individual listing their strengths as well as the areas where specific support was required or outcomes were to be achieved. Each person’s care plan included detailed risk assessments that identified specific risks that were associated with the health, care and support needs of the person to ensure that staff were aware of the specific risk and how to mitigate each risk so that people were kept safe from harm.

The service encouraged, motivated and ensured that all staff were equipped with the skills and knowledge needed to deliver the outlined programme of care and support. Staff, known as Behaviour Support Therapists (BST), were provided with an in-depth induction into the principles of ABA therapy as well as training in mandatory topics such as safeguarding, Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA), first aid and safe restraint techniques.

BEAM ABA had clear systems and processes in place to facilitate and ensure effective transition between services once they had come to the end of the support provision that they were commissioned to provide.

The service had a number of policies and procedures which were available to help ensure people were protected from abuse and the risk of abuse. These included robust recruitment processes, staff training and guidance and direction on how to identify abuse and the actions to take if abuse was to be suspected.

Staff told us they enjoyed working for the service and felt well-supported by the registered manager and colleagues. Care staff received regular supervision, clinical supervision, group reflective supervision and annual professional development reviews.

We saw suitable and safe arrangements in place in relation to the administration and recording of medicines