This inspection took place on the 8 November 2016 and was announced. This was the first inspection since the service was registered in December 2014.

Wood Court provides a support and care service run by Metropolitan Housing Trust Limited for up to 39 people over the age of 55 living in self- contained one bedroom flats. The service is delivered within an extra care housing scheme commissioned by the London Borough of Barnet by care staff who are on site 24 hours a day. The Care Quality Commission regulates the personal care service provided to residents by Metropolitan Housing Trust . On the day of our inspection there were 30 people receiving a personal care service

The service had a new manager who was in the process of becoming registered by the Care Quality Commission 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’s needs were assessed and care plans were developed to identify what care and support people required. People said they were involved in their care planning and were happy to express their views or raise concerns. When people’s needs changed, this was quickly identified and prompt, appropriate action was taken to ensure people’s well-being was protected. People had a copy of their care plan in their home.

People felt safe. Staff understood how to recognise the signs and symptoms of potential abuse and told us they would report any concerns they may have to their manager. Assessments were undertaken to assess any risks to the people using the service and the staff supporting them. This included environmental risks and any risks due to people’s health and support needs. The risk assessments we viewed included information about action to be taken to minimise these risks.

Staff were highly motivated and proud to work for the service; as a result staff turnover was kept to a minimum ensuring that continuity of care was in place for most people who used the service.

Staff were respectful of people’s privacy and maintained their dignity. Staff told us they gave people privacy whilst they undertook aspects of personal care, asking people how they would like things done and making enquiries as to their well-being to ensure people were comfortable.

Care staff received regular supervision and appraisal from their manager. These processes gave staff an opportunity to discuss their performance and identify any further training they required. Care and support workers we spoke with placed a high value on their supervision.

There were sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, skilled and experienced staff to care for the number of people living at the service.

We saw that regular visits had been made by the office staff to people using the service and their relatives in order to obtain feedback about the staff and the care provided.

The Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) provides a legal framework for making particular decisions on behalf of people who may lack the mental capacity to do so for themselves. The Act requires that as far as possible people make their own decisions and are helped to do so when needed. When they lack mental capacity to take particular decisions, any made on their behalf must be in their best interests and as least restrictive as possible.

People can only be deprived of their liberty to receive care and treatment when this is in their best interests and legally authorised under the MCA.The application procedures for this in care homes and hospitals are called the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS).We found that the service was working within the principles of the MCA, and there were no authorisations to deprive people of their liberty.

The management team provided good leadership and