The Wilf Ward Family Trust Domiciliary Care York service provides care and support to people living in 14 ‘supported living’ settings, so that they can live in their own homes as independently as possible. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for supported living; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support. At the time of our inspection the service was supporting 31 people with a learning disability or physical disability. People lived in their own homes across the York area, either individually or sharing with up to three other people.

At our last inspection we rated the service Good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of Good and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

The care service had 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 a learning disability were supported to live as ordinary a life as any citizen.

Staff were well trained and knowledgeable about how to support people effectively. Staff received a comprehensive induction and regular support. We found that staff training, along with knowledge of best practice, had been used to benefit people who used the service. This included screening people for dementia, and implementing knowledge gained in experiential training to make positive changes to people’s support.

Staff were aware of people’s healthcare needs and supported them to access healthcare services and professionals whenever needed. Staff also considered people’s emotional needs and we found they had been proactive in advocating for people to receive additional support and healthcare where required, to meet their holistic needs. Where people had complex nutritional needs, we found staff followed guidelines and used creative methods to ensure people had a healthy and varied diet.

There were sufficient staff to meet people’s needs. The provider planned staffing according to people’s requirements and used the allocated hours contracted by the local authority for people’s support. The provider conducted appropriate recruitment checks before staff started their employment, to ensure candidates were suitable to work with vulnerable people.

Positive risk taking was promoted, to support people in leading full lives and developing independence skills. Risk assessments and risk enablement plans were in place to help staff reduce risks to people’s safety and well-being. Staff had received training in safeguarding vulnerable adults and knew what action to take should they have any concerns. Safe systems were in place to ensure people received their medicines as prescribed.

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.

We observed staff were kind, caring and respectful in their interactions with people. Staff understood how to maintain people’s privacy and dignity. People were involved in decisions about their care. Where people were unable to express their views verbally, staff used their knowledge of people’s preferences, non-verbal communication and feedback from relatives to help ensure their wishes were considered. The provider was very proactive in raising awareness of equality, diversity and human rights issues.

Staff promoted people’s independence; they used varied methods to enable people’s participation in daily living tasks, such as cooking. Support was tailored to people’s needs. Staff used people’s preferred methods of com

We inspected this service on the 8 and 10 February 2016. The inspection was announced. The registered provider was given 48 hours’ notice because we needed to be sure that someone would be in the location offices when we visited.

The Wilf Ward Family Trust Domiciliary Care York is registered to provide personal care to people living in their own homes and specialises in supporting people who may be living with a learning disability, dementia or mental health conditions. At the time of our inspection there were 37 people using the service living across 15 supported living houses, flats and bungalows within York. People living in these houses were tenants of either The Wilf Ward Family Trust Domiciliary Care York, who owned two of the properties, or an independent housing provider who was responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of the buildings.

This was the first inspection of this service at this location.

The registered provider is required to have a registered manager in post and on the day of the inspection there was a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). 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.

During the inspection we found that the service was safe. There were systems in place to support staff to appropriately identify and responded to signs of abuse to keep people safe. Risks were identified and steps taken to minimise risks to keep people safe.

There was on-going recruitment and monitoring of staffing levels to ensure that people’s needs continued to be met. There were safe recruitment processes in place so that only people considered suitable were employed.

Medication was managed and administered safely. Where concerns were identified action was taken to address this and a new medication process introduced.

Staff received training and on-going support in their role. People using the service were supported to make decisions in line with relevant legislation and guidance.

People were supported to eat and drink enough and to access healthcare services where necessary.

We received positive feedback about the caring nature of staff. Staff were observed to be warm, responsive and attentive to people’s needs. People had developed meaningful caring relationships with the staff who supported them.

Staff supported people to have choice and control over the care and support they received and people were treated with dignity and respect.

Care plans contained person centred information and staff were knowledgeable about people’s needs as well as their preferences, hobbies and interests.

There was a system in place to ensure people could raise concerns or make a complaint if necessary. Complaints were appropriately investigated and responded to.

The service was well-led. Feedback was generally positive about the management of the service and there were systems in place to monitor the quality of the care and support provided and to drive improvements.