Flaxman Avenue is a six bed residential home providing short break support for younger and older adults with Learning Disabilities or Autistic Spectrum Disorder. It supports other needs such as sensory impairment, mental health or physical disabilities. The home is registered to provide accommodation without nursing. All rooms are on the ground floor with wide corridors and entrance areas to allow easy access for those using mobility scooters and wheelchairs.

The home is located on the outskirts of York city centre, in a residential area, with good access to the city`s services and amenities. There is parking available to the front of the home and an enclosed garden at the back of the property.

At the last inspection in September 2015 the home was rated ‘Good’. At this inspection we found the home remained ‘Good’.

Relatives had expressed that they wanted to meet every three months, this had not been implemented during our visit. One health professional felt that partnership working including communication could be improved by the home.

The registered manager had quality assurance systems and audits in place. We found that the maintenance audits and health and safety checks had identified work that needed to be completed, but no follow up actions had been noted.

The registered manager told us they would commence three monthly relatives meetings in 2018 and make plans to improve their partnership working with external agencies such as the local authority.

In view of the above information we recommended that the registered manager reviews record keeping to ensure all actions identified in audits or any other checks are fully completed and recorded.

The registered manager had systems in place to record and monitor safeguarding concerns and accidents and incidents; they had taken appropriate action when required.

Recruitment processes ensured appropriate checks were completed so that suitable people were employed to work with people accessing short breaks at the home. People living at the home were supported to ask their own questions during interviews and their feedback was taken into account when making recruitment decisions.

The registered manager and staff understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). This meant that they were working within the law to support people who may lack capacity to make their own decisions.

People are 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 home support this practice.

Risk assessments minimised the potential risk of harm to people living at the home. These were reviewed every six months or sooner if there were any significant changes to people’s needs.

Care plans included information that was important to people, such as their likes, dislikes and preferences. Staff had knowledge of promoting dignity and respecting people’s choices. They knew the importance of gaining people’s consent and involving appropriate health professionals, family members or representatives should a best interests meeting need to be organised to reach decisions.

Staff had received training to administer medicines safely and these were stored appropriately.

We were unable to observe meal times as the residents were attending day centres where they had their meals. One person had eaten breakfast at the home in the morning prior to our arrival. The registered manager told us that people had food and drinks available in the kitchen should they need it and staff supported them with preparation and cooking to promote their independence.

The registered manager told us that activities were led by the people living at the home. They told us they accessed a local park and Museums in the City of York.

Relatives and representatives told us they knew how to make a complaint if they needed to. The complaints procedure was available and on d

We inspected this service on 4 September 2015. The inspection was announced. The provider was given 24 hours’ notice because the location provides accommodation for younger adults who are often out during the day; we needed to be sure that someone would be in.

Flaxman Avenue is a residential respite service that specialises in supporting people with a learning disability. The service is situated in a residential suburb on the outskirts of York. Flaxman Avenue provides temporary accommodation for up to six people, both as planned respite if, for example, a carer goes on holiday and emergency respite during periods of crisis.

Accommodation is provided across a spacious purpose built bungalow with six single bedrooms, a communal living room and two kitchen/dining rooms.

The service was previously operated by another registered provider, but registered under a new provider, Lifeways Community Care Limited, in February 2015. This was the first inspection of this location following registration under the new provider.

The registered provider is required to have a registered manager in post and on the day of the inspection there was a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). 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.

When we inspected this service we found that it was safe for the people staying there. There was enough staff to meet people’s needs. Staff had training to enable them to keep people safe and effectively manage risks. Staff understood individual risks and worked proactively to manage these, whilst promoting the choices and independence of people using the service. Staff showed a good understanding of the types of abuse they might see and what action they should take to raise concerns.

The service had systems in place to manage and administer medication. The service completed daily audits of medication to ensure that people had received the right medication at the right time.

The people staying at Flaxman Avenue had a care plan containing personal information about their needs and preferences. We saw that staff understood the needs of the people they were supporting and had systems in place to share information about new arrivals. We saw that the service worked hard to support people new to the service to settle in. Staff understood the importance of flexible person-centred care and this was reflected in the support they provided. It was clear that the staff we spoke with genuinely cared about the people they were supporting and this was reflected in the feedback and positive experiences of people using the service.

The service had a robust recruitment and induction process to equip staff with the skills needed to meet people’s needs. On-going training was provided for all staff and people we spoke with were knowledgeable about their work. There was a supportive environment with experienced staff supporting new members of staff. Staff spoke highly of the management and support they received.

We received positive feedback about the food provided at Flaxman Avenue. It was clear that the service had a flexible approach to preparing meals and drinks to meet the needs and preferences of the people using the service. People had choice and control over what and when they ate.

People staying at Flaxman Avenue were supported to maintain their daily routines and access the wider community. The home encouraged people to maintain contact with family and friends. People had choice and control over how they spent their time whilst staying at Flaxman Avenue.

The service had a complaints procedure in place and people using the service, staff and visitors told us they felt they could raise concerns and that these would be listened to.

People told us they felt the service was well-led. However, records were not always well maintained and the systems in place to monitor the quality of the service had not always identified and addressed these problems.