Pine Lodge is a care home for short term breaks and respite care. Pine Lodge primarily supports younger people with learning disabilities or on the autistic spectrum, physical disabilities or mental health needs. It also has two self-contained apartments for people transitioning into independent living. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The inspection was unannounced and took place on 27 June. The provider of this service had recently changed and therefore this was the first comprehensive inspection for this service under the new ownership.

The care service had not originally been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen. However, people were given choices and their independence and participation within the local community encouraged.

The service 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.

Improvements were required to ensure that timely action was taken to make the improvements identified by the registered manager, for example, following quality assurance audits that had been completed. Improvements were also required to ensure that statutory notifications were submitted to the CQC in a timely way.

People received safe care and staffing arrangements were flexible to meet the needs of the people that were using the service at any one time. People received their medicines when they were ready and safeguarding incidents were given appropriate attention.

People’s needs were fully considered before they began to use the service to make sure their needs could be met. People's consent was gained before their care was provided. 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 were treated with dignity and respect and staff could spend time getting on know people and their preferences. People and their relatives were made to feel welcome at the service, and were involved in making choices about their care.

People had care plans in place which reflected their needs and these were regularly updated. Staff made great efforts to help people achieve their goals or participate in activities that they could enjoy. Complaint procedures were in place for people to make a complaint, should the need arise.