Tranquil Cross provides accommodation and personal care for up to two people who have a learning disability. There were two people living at the service at the time of this inspection.

We carried out a comprehensive inspection of Tranquil Cross on 14 October 2017. This was an announced inspection. We told the provider two days before our inspection visit that we would be coming. This was because we wanted to make sure the registered manager was there, as well as staff and people to speak with and access to records. This was the first rateable inspection for this service since registration in November 2016.

There was a registered manager in post who was responsible for the day-to-day running of 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

We spoke with relatives and professionals working with the people who lived in Tranquil Cross and their feedback about how the service was operating was positive. Staff commented, "Staff and managers treat people as individuals and work with the goal of helping people to achieve what they want to in their lives."

We looked around the service and saw it was well maintained and met people's needs. The garden was large and had an uneven surface in one section where a swing had been removed leaving some divots in the ground. As this posed a potential trip hazard it was discussed with the registered manager. Following the inspection we received information that the holes had been filled to prevent any risk of trips or falls. The boiler, electrics, gas appliances and water supply had been tested to ensure they were safe to use. On the day of inspection we found some inconsistency in the temperature of water from different outlets. This was discussed with the registered manager who immediately arranged for a plumber to visit the home and check the consistency of water temperatures. People’s bedrooms had been decorated and furnished in line with their personal preferences

We noted one person did not have access to laundry facilities at their accommodation. We were told the expectation was that the person would access these facilities from another person's accommodation. This did not uphold one person's right to privacy in their home or a person's ability to exercise their independence to complete their own laundry with support. This was because in reality, staff told us they were undertaking this task for the person. Following the inspection we received information from the registered manager that a proposal had been agreed by the organisation to create a new utility area adjacent to the house which could be used by the person who did not such facilities in their home.

A relative told us, “We are very happy with the care and support [Person’s name] is receiving. They have achieved so much since moving there. It has been a very good move so far.” A professional familiar with how the service operated told us, “The team at Tranquil Cross are very caring towards the individual in that home. Since [they] moved there at the beginning of the year, they've provided very person-centred and proactive support which I feel has then led on to the individual, with the right support, being able to achieve things which other care environments had previously struggled with e.g there has been a reduction in frequency and intensity of behaviours, increase in social activities such as kayaking, holidays etc.”

People were relaxed and busy engaged in their own choice of activities and appeared to be happy and well supported by the service. We saw one person spent time with their family and went out for the day and another person completed some chores before going out for a walk. A relative told us, “[Person} gets out a