Our inspection took place on 3 November 2015. The inspection was carried out by one inspector. We started our inspection early in the morning so that we could meet and speak with the people who lived there and staff in case they were out of the home later.
The provider is registered to accommodate and deliver personal care to a maximum of 14 adults who lived with a mental health condition and/or associated needs. At the time of our inspection 13 people lived at the home.
The manager was registered with us as is required by law. 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.
Medicine systems relating to people self-medicating were not always managed to a safe standard.
Staffing levels were not determined as a result of a full assessment. Therefore, the provider could not ensure that people’s needs would be consistently met.
All people we spoke with felt safe. Systems were in place and staff were aware of what they should do to protect people from the risk of abuse.
Staff knew what Deprivation of Liberty Safeguarding (DoLS) meant and what they should do if they identified any DoLS issues.
Staff felt that the training and support they received ensured that they had the skills and knowledge to provide safe and appropriate support to the people who lived there.
People felt it was a good place and that they were happy there. People were enabled and supported to be as independent as possible regarding all activities of daily living.
People felt that the staff were helpful and kind. Interactions between staff and the people who lived there were positive in that staff were respectful, polite and helpful.
People received care in line with their best interests. Advocacy services were secured when there was a need to ensure that people were given the opportunity to make informed decisions.
Complaints systems were available for people to use. People felt that they could state their concerns or dissatisfaction and issues would be looked into.
People felt that the quality of service was good. The management of the service was stable. The registered manager knew when they needed to send us notifications about incidents that occurred. Audits were undertaken to determine if changes or improvements were needed. However, these had not fully included all aspects of medicine safety.