We inspected Woodside Farm House on the 13 and 18 April 2017, the inspection was unannounced. Woodside Farm House is a care home for up to eight people with a learning disability. At the time of the inspection seven people were living there. Two people were living in self contained flats at the rear of the property and the rest lived in the main house. Woodside farm House is part of the Potens group, a national provider of health & social care support services for children and adults with disabilities and complex needs.

At the last inspection, the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

There was a registered manager in post. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the CQC 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 told us they felt safe living at Woodside Farm House and they liked the staff. Relatives also told us they felt people were well cared for and safe. This view was echoed by the health and social care professionals we spoke with. Staff knew how to help protect people if they suspected they were at risk of abuse or harm. The service kept people’s personal monies for them and accurate records of all expenditures. Risks to people's health, safety and wellbeing had been assessed. Staff knew how to minimise risks in order to help keep people safe from harm or injury.

Some people could become distressed or anxious at times and found this difficult to cope with. When they were particularly anxious they could act in a way which could put themselves or others at risk of harm. Staff were aware of how to support people appropriately at these times to help keep them safe and well.

There were sufficient numbers levels of staff to meet people's needs. Staff were deployed effectively across the service to help ensure all people’s needs were met quickly. Rotas were flexible to enable people to take part in activities which fell outside of normal shift patterns.

People received their medicines appropriately and as prescribed. Systems for recording the administration and stock of medicines held at the service were not robust. We have made a recommendation about this in the report.

People were assessed in line with the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) as set out in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA). DoLS provide legal protection for vulnerable people who are, or may become deprived of their liberty. The MCA provides the legal framework to assess people’s capacity to make certain decisions, at a certain time. When people are assessed as not having the capacity to make a decision, a best interest decision is made involving people who know the person well and other professionals when appropriate. Records showed applications for DoLS were being made appropriately and some people had DoLS authorisations in place. 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.

Staff demonstrated an enthusiasm for their work and a genuine fondness for the people they supported. They spoke of people positively and emphasised their attributes and qualities when describing people to us. One person was going through a particularly difficult time and staff were sympathetic and understanding towards them and displayed a concern for their well-being.

People were supported according to their individual needs and preferences. Although people sometimes liked to spend time with each other they also enjoyed taking part in individual activities to suit their own pace. Staff had access to four vehicles and were able to plan people’s days to reflect their interests. Some people were able to use public transport in order to access the l

We inspected Woodside Farm House on 18 March 2015, the inspection was unannounced. Woodside Farm House provides care and accommodation for up to eight people with a learning disability. At the time of the inspection six people were living there. One person was living in a self-contained bungalow and the remaining five resided in the main house. We last inspected the service in August 2013; we had no concerns at that time.

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 told us they felt safe living at Woodside Farm House. We saw people and staff relaxing and spending time together and enjoying a variety of activities throughout the inspection visit. Relatives were happy with the quality of care and support provided and told us the staff were; “Very helpful.”

There were systems in place within the environment to help ensure people were kept safe at all times. Staff responded quickly to any incidents and supported people safely. Staff had received training which was relevant to the needs of the people living at Woodside Farm House. They received regular supervision and told us they were well supported. One commented; “We would be told if we got it wrong in a constructive way.”

New employees underwent a thorough induction to help ensure they were competent and confident when they started working with people. This included a range of training and familiarisation with the homes working processes and peoples support needs. Recruitment processes were robust and appropriate pre-employment checks had been completed to help ensure people’s safety.

People’s care plans were detailed and contained sufficient information to enable staff to meet people’s needs. They were designed to paint a picture of the whole person and give staff a depth of knowledge and understanding about the person’s personality as well as their care needs.

People were supported to take part in a range of activities both in and outside of the service. Activities were meaningful to people and chosen according to their interests and hobbies. There were sufficient numbers of staff to support people to carry out their individual interests.

Staff had developed positive relationships with people and spoke about them warmly and with concern for their well-being. Relatives told us they believed staff had people’s best interests at heart. People’s communication needs were identified and taken into account. Staff worked to find ways to help people communicate when they were feeling anxious or distressed.

Management and staff demonstrated a clear set of values. They spoke of the need to work with people to help them have “a good day.” The registered manager was working with external health care professionals to reduce the restrictions for one person. Staff were positive about this approach and told us they wanted to help people increase their independence as much as possible.

We spoke with the registered manager, three people who used the service, a representative of someone who lived at Woodside Farm House and four members of staff. Not everyone we met who lived at Woodside Farm was able to speak with us due to their healthcare needs. Some of the people we spoke with had limited verbal skills.

People who lived at Woodside Farm House were happy with the support they received and thought the staff were “good”.

Staff at Woodside Farm House engaged with people to ensure they were able to give meaningful consent for the care and support they received.

Staff said although they received a lot of training they would like more specific training so they could support one person more effectively.

There was an effective quality assurance procedure in place.

Some of the people who used the service were not able to comment in detail about the service they receive due to their healthcare needs. We spoke with two relatives of people who lived at Woodside Farm House to get their views of the service, and they told us they were happy with the care provided. We observed the staff talking with people who used the service and saw they were respectful, friendly and supportive to them.

Care records showed people were given information to help them make decisions for themselves where possible, and we found people’s privacy, dignity and independence were respected and upheld. We saw people’s wishes were respected.

Care plans and associated documentation provided sufficient detail to directe and guide staff on the action they needed to take in order to meet people’s assessed care needs. People's records were personalised and provided clear information about the person’s wishes and abilities.

People were protected from abuse and staff were trained and supported to carry out their roles.

The home was clean throughout at the time of the inspection.