This announced inspection took place on 2 May 2017. We last inspected in March 2015 and found the service was meeting the legal requirements in force at that time and had given the service a Good rating.

The provider was given 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because the location provides personal care and support to people in their own homes. As the people who use this service often accessed community activities we needed to make sure people were available to speak to us.

Chrysalis provides personal care to people who have a learning disability or other complex needs. At the time of our inspection Chrysalis were offering support to two individuals who lived in a supported living tenancy and to two people living in the community. The organisation runs a day service for people who have a learning disability and runs a social enterprise shop in the town of Wigton.

There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager (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.

The feedback we received from people using the service and their relatives was very positive. Social and healthcare professionals were all very complimentary about the working relationships with the service. One healthcare professional told us, “This service is one that I would feel proud to work in.”

We saw the service had a very strong, visible person-centred culture. All staff were passionate about caring and supporting people in ways that mattered to the individual. The service demonstrated an excellent commitment to providing care which was of a high quality and staff were very enthusiastic about supporting people to lead interesting lives of their own choosing. The service put people’s views at the forefront of the service and designed the service around people’s needs.

People made great progress whilst they used the service and people were encouraged to discover and achieve their goals and aspirations. The manager and senior team spoke of their passion to give people the best support possible.

People's experiences of care were overwhelmingly positive. People were treated with care, compassion and great kindness. Staff had an empowering and empathetic attitude to support people’s personal development, and each person was supported in a way that was individual to them and in ways that promoted their independence.

People were protected from the risk of abuse, because the provider had taken reasonable steps to identify the possibility of abuse and prevent abuse from happening. People told us they felt very safe and were well cared for. Staff were confident about how to protect people from harm and what they would do if they had any safeguarding concerns.

Newly recruited staff had thorough pre-employment checks and received induction that prepared them for the demands of their job. Staff confirmed their induction had equipped them well with the essential knowledge and practical guidance they needed before they took up their care duties. All staff felt very supported by the organisation and had very good opportunities for personal development and career progression.

Training was given a very high priority in this service. A dedicated training manager was employed who had developed a programme of extensive training that was designed around the needs of the people they were supporting. The management team identified and utilised the strengths of the staffing team.

People’s rights were protected and staff obtained people’s consent before providing care. The manager understood their responsibility to comply with the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA). People made informed choices and were enabled to be involved in decisions.

People were supported to hav

This announced inspection took place on the 4th March 2015. The provider was given 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit because the location provides personal care and support to people in their own homes. As the people who use this service often accessed community activities we needed to make sure people were available to speak to us. Chrysalis provides personal care to people who have a learning disability or other complex needs.

This was the first visit to this service which was registered by The Care Quality Commission (CQC) in August 2013. Although the service was registered in 2013 Chrysalis did not start to provide the regulated activity of personal care until April 2014. At the time of our inspection the service provided personal care and support to two people.

There was a registered manager in post on the day of our visit. 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.

The inspection team consisted of one adult social care inspector.

We found that people who used this service were safe. The support workers knew how to protect people from harm. All staff had completed training in the safety of vulnerable adults and knew the signs to look for and how to report any incidents of concern. There were good systems in place to ensure people knew the staff that supported them. Staff rosters had been discussed with the management team, the support workers and the people who were supported by this agency.

We saw that the provider had robust recruitment policies and procedures which ensured only suitable people were employed to care for vulnerable people with complex needs.

We found that the service worked well with external agencies such as social services, other care providers and mental health professionals to provide appropriate care to meet people’s physical and emotional needs.

We saw that medicines were administered safety and all the records were up date and audited regularly. All staff had completed training in the safe handling of medicines.

We saw people were encouraged to take part in a variety of activities in the community as well as the opportunity to attend the day care service organised by the registered provider.

The service followed the requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice. This helped to protect the rights of people who were not able to make important decisions themselves. Best interest meetings were held to assist people who were not always able to give consent and make difficult decisions for themselves.

We saw that professional advice from adult care social workers, the learning disability nurse and other health care advisors was accessed as and when necessary.

Personalised care plans were in place in a format that was suitable through pictures and symbols as well as writing.

There was an appropriate internal quality monitoring procedure in place. Checks or audits were completed in respect of, medicines management, care plans health and safety and equality and diversity. These checks ensured people were cared for and supported in the way they chose themselves.