The inspection took place on 12 December 2016. The inspection was announced.

The Hadlows is registered to provide accommodation with nursing or personal care for up to 10 people. There were nine people living at the home on the day of our inspection.

The Hadlows supported people who had an acquired brain injury, many of whom had lived at the home for a number of years. People had varying care and support needs, some requiring staff support for most of their needs and others who needed relatively minimal support.

The Hadlows is situated in a residential area in Tonbridge and has recently been refurbished. The service previously consisted of two houses next door to each other. The property had been redeveloped to create one large house. Four bedrooms had en-suite facilities and the other five people shared two bathrooms between them. The communal living space was light and airy with good facilities to enable people to share each other’s company or to have privacy if they wished. A private back garden had a decked patio area with well-kept shrubs and borders.

There was a registered manager based at 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 were encouraged and supported to be as independent as possible. They were involved in all aspects of the home, from planning and cooking meals to choosing how they furnished and decorated their bedroom or what activities and interests they wanted to take part in.

People were fully involved in the assessment and planning of their care and support, deciding how they wanted staff to support them. Their relatives were also involved where appropriate and if people wanted this. Individual risks were identified when planning people’s care and control measures put in place to manage risks, keeping people safe from harm without compromising their independence.

Medicines were managed safely. The processes in place ensured that the administration and handling of medicines was suitable for the people who lived in the home. Some people administered their own medicines and they were supported to be able to continue to do this safely.

People had choice and control over food planning and preparation. Where people had specific nutritional support needs, these were assessed and managed well. People were supported to access health care professionals to be able to maintain their physical and mental well-being.

The provider and registered manager had suitable processes in place to safeguard people from different forms of abuse. Staff had been trained in safeguarding people and in the provider’s whistleblowing policy. They were confident that they could raise any matters of concern with the registered manager and these would be acted on. Staff knew they could go outside of their organisation and raise concerns with the local authority safeguarding team if necessary.

There were sufficient staff with a mix of skills on duty to support people with their needs. Staff attended regular training courses, including regular refresher training. Staff were supported by their registered manager and felt able to raise any concerns they had or to make suggestions to improve the service for people.

The provider and registered manager had robust recruitment practices in place. Applicants were assessed as suitable for their job roles. All staff received induction training at the start of their employment and had to pass a probationary period to show they were suitable for the role.

The Care Quality Commission is required by law to monitor the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards. The provider and staff understood their responsibilities under the Mental Capacity Act 2005.

The home had a pleasant a