About the service:

Redhouse is a residential care home that was providing personal care to four people who had a learning disability and/or autism at the time of the inspection.

People’s experience of using this service:

Staff understood their responsibilities to protect people from abuse and discrimination. They knew to report any concerns and ensure action was taken. The registered manager worked with the local authority safeguarding adults team to protect people.

Staff were supported in their roles and received an effective level of training. They told us they were happy with the level of training and support they received and we observed them supporting people in a competent manner.

People were protected from harm by the provider having effective systems in place to monitor medicine management, staffing, infection control and upkeep of the premises.

Staff promoted people’s dignity and privacy. Staff provided person-centred support by listening to people and engaging them at every opportunity. Staff were caring and understanding towards people. People using the service appeared comfortable in the presence of staff working in the service.

The premises provided suitable accommodation for people with communal areas and bedrooms which were personalised to peoples individual interests.

Support plans were detailed and reviewed with the person and their relatives when possible. Staff worked with and took advice from health care professionals. People’s health care needs were met.

People had a variety of internal activities and external activities, which they enjoyed on a regular basis.

The registered manager ran a well organised service. Relatives’ views were sought, and opportunities taken to improve the service. Formal supervision meetings were carried out and staff were also supervised informally. They told us they were supported and clear about what was expected of them. Audits and checks were carried out, so any problem could be identified and rectified.

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.

The care service supported people in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidelines. 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.

Rating at last inspection:

The service was rated as Good at the last inspection. The inspection report for the last inspection was published on 7 October 2017.

Why we inspected:

This was a scheduled inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up:

We will continue to carry out ongoing monitoring and will inspect the service in line with its rating.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Our inspection was unannounced and took place on 13 September 2016. Our last inspection of the service took place on 4 December 2013 and the provider was compliant in all of the areas inspected.

Redhouse is registered to provide accommodation and personal care to a maximum of four people with learning disabilities. At the time of our inspection, there were four people living at the service.

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.

People were supported by staff who understood how to report concerns of abuse and how to manage risk to keep people safe.

There were sufficient numbers of staff available for people and staff employed had undergone checks to ensure they were safe to work.

People were supported with their medication by staff who had received training in how to provide this support safely.

Staff had access to on-going training and supervision to ensure they had the skills and knowledge required to support people effectively.

People had their rights upheld in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005. People were supported to have enough to eat and drink and where required people had been supported to access healthcare services.

Staff were kind and treated people with dignity. People were encouraged to maintain their independence where possible and were given information on how they can access advocacy services.

People were involved in the assessment and review of their care. Staff knew people’s preferences with regards to their care and people had been informed on how they could make a complaint if they wished.

People knew the registered manager and staff told us they felt supported by the management team.

There were systems in place to monitor the quality of the service and to gather feedback from people on their experience of the service.

We carried out this inspection to check on the care and welfare of people. There were three people living at the home on the day of the inspection but they were not all able to express their views. We spoke with two people, one member of staff, the home manager and two relatives by phone after the inspection. The provider and service manager were also available on the day to support the inspection.

We found that people lived their lives independently and staff respected their dignity and privacy. One relative said, "X is not always aware of the choices to make but staff support him to do so".

Records we saw showed how people's risks were being managed to ensure they were supported appropriately.

The provider had a system in place to ensure people were kept safe from harm.

We found that all staff were appropriately checked before being allowed to support vulnerable people.

We found that people were given the appropriate information to allow them to share any concerns they may have. One Relative said, "I know how to complain, I would speak to the manager".