This was an unannounced inspection which took place on 18 December 2017.

Kestrels is a residential care home which is registered to provide a service for up to five people with learning disabilities. People had other associated difficulties such as behaviours that may cause distress to themselves and/or others and some people were on the autistic spectrum.

At the last inspection, on 16 December 2015, the service was rated as good in all domains. This meant that the service was rated as overall good. At this inspection we found the service remained good in four domains and outstanding in the responsive domain. This meant the service remained overall good.

Why the service is rated good.

There is a registered manager running the service. 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.

People, staff and visitors were protected from harm and the registered manager ensured the service remained as safe as possible. Safety was maintained and promoted by staff who had been trained in safeguarding vulnerable adults and health and safety policies and procedures. People were also involved in this training as far as possible.

Staff understood how to protect the people in their care and knew what action to take if they identified any concerns. General risks and risks to individuals were identified and appropriate action was taken to reduce them, as far as possible.

People benefitted from adequate staffing ratios which ensured there were enough staff on duty to meet people’s diverse, complex, individual needs safely. Recruitment systems were in place to make sure, that as far as possible, staff recruited were safe and suitable to work with people. People were supported to take their medicines, at the right times and in the right amounts by trained and competent staff. They were encouraged to take some responsibilities for their own medicines, as was safe and appropriate.

People continued to be supported by well-trained staff who were supported to make sure they could meet people’s varied well-being and complex needs. Staff worked very hard to deal effectively with people’s current and quickly changing health and emotional well-being needs. The service worked closely with health and other professionals to ensure they were able to meet people’s needs.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. The policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People continued to be supported by a caring and committed staff team who continued to meet people’s needs with patience and kindness.

The service was extraordinarily person centred and responsive to people’s needs, wishes and aspirations. Staff had made very positive impacts on people’s independence, self-esteem and overall well-being. Activity programmes were exceptional and designed to meet the outcomes people wanted from their care. Support planning was highly individualised and regularly reviewed which ensured people’s needs were met and their equality and diversity was respected.

The registered manager was highly respected and ensured the service was well-led. She was described as open, approachable and supportive. She knew people’s needs and supported her staff team to provide excellent care. The registered manager and her team were committed to ensuring there was no discrimination relating to staff or people in the service. The quality of care the service provided was constantly assessed, reviewed and improved, as necessary.

This inspection took place on the 16 December 2015 and was unannounced.

Kestrels is a care home which is registered to provide care (without nursing) for up to five people with a learning disability. The home is a large detached building within a residential area close to Newbury town centre. People have their own bedrooms and use of communal areas which included an enclosed private garden. The people living in the home needed care and support from staff at all times and have a range of care needs.

There is a full-time registered manager. 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 recruitment and selection process helped to ensure people were supported by staff of good character. There was a sufficient amount of qualified and trained staff to meet people’s needs safely. Staff knew how to recognise and report any concerns they had about the care and welfare of people to protect them from abuse.

People were provided with effective care from a dedicated staff team who had received support through supervision, staff meetings and training. Their care plans detailed how they wanted their needs to be met. Risk assessments identified risks associated with personal and specific behavioural and or health related issues. They helped to promote people’s independence whilst minimising the risks. Staff treated people with kindness and respect and had regular contact with people’s families to make sure they were fully informed about the care and support their relative received.

The service had taken the necessary action to ensure they were working in a way which recognised and maintained people’s rights. They understood the relevance of the Mental Capacity Act 2005, Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and consent issues which related to the people in their care. The Mental Capacity Act 2005 legislation provides a legal framework that sets out how to act to support people who do not have capacity to make a specific decision. DoLS provide a lawful way to deprive someone of their liberty, provided it is in their own best interests or is necessary to keep them from harm.

Staff were supported to receive the training and development they needed to care for and support people’s individual needs. People received good quality care. The provider had an effective system to regularly assess and monitor the quality of service that people received. There were various formal methods used for assessing and improving the quality of care.

There were five people resident at The Kestrels when we visited.

We spoke with three of the people who used the service and they told us they were happy at the home. People had been here for many years and one told us, “I am happy here at The Kestrels”. Another person told us, “it’s my home and family, I like it a lot”.

We found that each person’s care and welfare was important to staff and the care plans were being followed. People were enabled and treated with dignity and their consent was requested for care and treatment. They were encouraged and supported to achieve maximum independence.

People were safeguarded from abuse because staff were trained to identify, prevent and to respond to events relating to safeguarding incidents.

Care and management records were up to date, reviewed and stored in a secure place. Action had been taken where necessary as a result of feedback from people who used the service, and others.

People living in the home had individual communication and behavioural needs. We spoke with the five people who used the service and they told us they liked living in the home. They said staff were lovely and they could talk to staff about anything that was troubling them. One person told us that the manager “was great”, another told us "I like living here”. We saw that people were involved with their care and the running of the home as far as they were able.

We were told that independence and individuality were promoted within the home. People living there were supported and enabled to do things for themselves as far as they were able. They were encouraged to express their views and to participate in making decisions relating to their care and treatment.

We looked at a range of records, spoke with the provider, the manager and two members of staff. We saw the communal areas of the home, some people’s bedrooms and spent time observing interactions between staff and people living in the home.

People told us that they liked living in the home. Staff were kind and they could talk to them if they had concerns. People were involved with their care and the running of the home. They told us that there were house meetings where they could put forward ideas and make requests for things such as meal choices, holidays and activities.