This inspection took place on 28 August 2018 and was announced. The service registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in March 2017 as a new service. This was its first rated inspection.

This service provides care and support to people living in a number of ‘supported living’ settings, so that they can live in their own home as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support. At the time of the inspection, a total of 17 people were receiving care and support from the service.

The registered provider had policies, procedures and systems in place to record safeguarding concerns, accidents and incidents and took action, informing the local authority and the Care Quality Commission as required. Staff had received safeguarding training and could identify different types of abuse and understood their responsibilities to report any unsafe care or abusive practices.

The provider embedded a proactive approach to managing risks to people who used the service. Risk assessments were carried out to enable people to keep their independence and receive care with minimum risk to themselves or others. We saw risk assessments were in place and covered many aspects of people’s lives including mobility, accessing the community and medication.

We saw people received their medicines when they needed them. The provider had a comprehensive medication policy which supported staff to administer medicines safely. Staff had medicines training and their competency checked annually. We saw medication administration records were completed accurately.

The provider made sure there was enough staff on duty and we found recruitment procedures were safe and all relevant checks were undertaken before new members of staff commenced their employment. Staff received a thorough induction at the start of their employment and new staff completed a qualification known as the Care Certificate if they do not already hold a relevant qualification. Staff had the skills and knowledge required to support people with their care needs.

They received regular training, supervision and appraisals and were knowledgeable about their roles and responsibilities.

Staff supported people to access health professionals including GP’s dentist and other professionals involved in meeting their needs. Staff also supported people to maintain a balanced diet and people were given choices and supported to purchase healthy food options.

Staff understood and demonstrated a good working knowledge of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards and the key requirements of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. The provider and staff had received training on the MCA. There was also a policy on the MCA which was accessible to staff.

People were cared for with kindness and compassion. We saw they were treated with dignity and respect and supported to maintain their independence. We observed positive interactions between people and staff throughout the inspection. People looked engaged, relaxed, and happy and were supported by staff that knew them well.

Care and support was planned and personalised to each person, which ensured they were able to make choices about their daily lives. Staff supported people to maintain and develop their relationships with those close to them, their social networks, and community.

People told us they had access to a complaints procedure and were confident any concerns would be taken seriously and acted upon by the registered manager. We saw complaints had been dealt with appropriately

There was a positive culture in the service. Staff told us the registered manager was passionate and dedicated to providing a high-quality service to people. The provider had effective quality assurance arrangements in place and the registered manager conducted regular audits across the service to raise standards