Moorleigh Residential Care Home provides accommodation for up to twenty adults with mental health needs. At the time of the inspection there were 20 people living in the service, two rooms are double and people had agreed to share.

There was a registered manager in post. 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.

At the last inspection, the service was rated Good overall. At this inspection we found the service remained Good in all areas.

Why the service is rated good.

People told us, “They [the staff] are very nice people”, “Everything is hunky-dory, they help me shop and it’s just like a home really”, “It’s very good at Moorleigh” and “[The registered manager] is a superwoman. It’s family owned and everybody knows everybody, lovely. You can live your life here and I like going out with people.” The registered manager said, “We form close bonds with people, we care about them. Even when one person moved on we made sure we visited with their old friends. Staff are very important too, we all talk all the time.” Staff knew people well and told us, “It’s a close, small home. We know people’s families and they know ours. We know when people are not feeling sociable or how to encourage appropriate dress for example to maintain dignity.” Two staff commented, “We love it here, we’ve been here so long it’s like we’ve moved in. It’s a family thing.”

People remained safe at the service because they received their medicines safely. People and staff told us there were sufficient staff to meet people’s needs. Risk assessments were completed to enable people to retain their independence and receive care with minimum risk to themselves or others. For example, most people were able to go out into the community without support. They had been involved in identifying possible risks and how to manage them independently or with support when they asked. The majority of people enjoyed smoking and this had been managed well.

People continued to receive care from staff who had the skills and knowledge required to effectively support them. Staff were well trained and competent. 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's healthcare needs were monitored by the staff and people had access to healthcare professionals according to their individual needs. For example, close liason with community mental health services.

People said the staff were kind and very caring. One person said, “It’s nice here. You can do as you like, come and go when you want. I can’t fault it here. The staff help me visit friends and make sure I’m ok. I can go out on my own on the bus.” There was a calm atmosphere in the service, with people relaxing, going out or enjoying a lie in. People's privacy was respected. People where possible, or their representatives, were involved in decisions about the care and support people received. The registered manager and provider sought people's views to make sure people were at the heart of any changes within the home. One person told us they went to the resident’s meetings held regularly in the home; the registered manager said the service had worked hard to encourage people to participate and share their views.

The service remained responsive to people's individual needs. Care and support was personalised to each person which ensured they were able to make choices about their day to day lives. People were assisted to take part in a wide range of activities according to their individual interests. This also included enabling people to access activities they liked to do in the commun

This inspection was unannounced and took place on the 14 April 2015.

Moorleigh Residential Care Home is a long established family run care home in Torquay, providing accommodation and care for up to twenty people with mental health needs. Some of the people living at the home are older people, and the home provides both long term and short term care.

The home had a registered manager in post. 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 were not always protected against the risks associated with their care. We identified a minor concern in relation to the recording of the risk assessment of the outcomes of disclosure and barring checks undertaken on staff members. We have made a recommendation about the staff recruitment process.

People were protected against the risks associated with medicines, which were regularly audited and given to people in ways that met their needs and preferences. People were safeguarded from abuse, and there were enough staff on duty to meet people’s needs.

Staff had the skills and knowledge to support people consistently and safely. They were kind and compassionate, respectful to individuals and caring in the ways they supported people. There were good relationships in evidence between people who lived at the home and amongst the staff team and a sense of trust and openness.

Staff understood people’s rights under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and appropriate referrals had been made under the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards to ensure people’s rights were assessed and protected. Staff could demonstrate their understanding of capacity and consent, and were clear about how they supported people who presented challenges or self-harming or destructive behaviours.

People received individualised care, based on their needs and taking into account their goals, wishes and aspirations. Care plans were reviewed regularly. People had access to healthcare to meet their needs.

People had opportunities to take part in community or home based activities that met their needs and wishes. The registered manager and other staff were working with individuals to encourage a healthy lifestyle, and develop new skills.

Staff understood the ethos of the home and were well organised and experienced. The home’s management team had clear roles and operated effective quality assurance and management systems. Records were clear and well maintained. Audits of practice were carried out regularly, and learning from incidents was used to improve the service.

During the inspection it was identified that the service had a regulated activity on their registration that they were not providing. This did not affect the service however the registered manager and provider agreed to make an application to have this removed.

At the time of our visit, there were seventeen people in the service. People we met told us they were happy. One person said "Ooh, it's lovely here, all the staff are great and the food's good too". People told us that staff were very approachable and kind.

Each person we met told us they felt they were involved in their care and how it was delivered. One person said "I know my care plan and I agree with it all". Another person told us they "like to talk about my care plan when staff ask me".

People told us they felt safe living at the service and knew who to speak to if they were unhappy. One person told us "I'd find the manager and tell them straight away". In addition, staff were knowledgeable about the causes of abuse, and were confident to report any concerns that arose.

Staff we met all told us they received a good level of training to support people properly. One staff told us "The training's helped us all do a good job".

During our visit, we saw that the service had a robust system that measured quality and took other people's opinions into account in order to improve.

People we spoke with told us they were happy with the standard of care and support they received. One person said “I sometimes find it hard to accept that people can be so kind. They are wonderful here.”

People had access to education and leisure activities and were able to participate in day to day decisions about their lives. People were involved in their care. People felt safe living at the home and knew who to speak to if they were unhappy.

Support workers knew about the different types of abuse and knew how to report any allegations correctly.

There were enough suitably trained staff on duty to meet the needs of people living at the service.

All records seen were up to date and were stored securely.