287 Dyke Road

287 Dyke Road is a residential care home that provides care and accommodation for people with physical and learning disabilities. It was registered for the support of up to eight people. Eight people were living at the service on the day of our inspection.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. Right support, right care, right culture is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services providing support to people with a learning disability and/or autistic people.

The service was registered before Right Support, Right Care, Right Culture was developed. The service had not been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. The guidance ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning

disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence.

This service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting most of the underpinning principles of right support, right care, right culture.

Right support:

• The service was a large domestic property, that was bigger than would be considered in line with current best practice guidelines. However, the provider had made the service homely and welcoming. People received personalised care and support specific to their needs and preferences. People were protected from the risks of harm, abuse or discrimination because staff knew what actions to take if they identified concerns. There were enough staff working to provide the support people needed. Staff understood the risks associated with the people they supported. Risk assessments provided guidance for staff about individual and environmental risks. People received their medicines safely, when they needed them.

Right care:

• Care was person-centred and promoted people’s dignity, privacy and human rights. People’s individual needs and choices were recognised, and respected. This had been effective in supporting people to achieve goals and encouraged them to learn and grow as individuals. People were supported to have choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

Right culture:

• Despite the need to keep people safe during the COVID-19 pandemic taking priority, the provider and staff had worked hard to develop good leadership. Quality monitoring systems had been embedded and morale was good amongst the staff team. We received positive feedback in relation to the care people received and how the service was run. One relative told us, “I’m very happy with what they do for [my relative], he has very challenging needs that I couldn’t manage, but they do.”

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the provider had ensured that appropriate infection control procedures were in place to keep people safe. This included increased cleaning and ensuring adequate supplies of personal protective equipment (PPE) were available. Staff completed training in relation to COVID-19. We were assured the provider managed infection prevention and control through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Staff had the skills and knowledge to meet people's needs and preferences. They received training, regular supervision and attended team meetings to support them in their roles. People's nutritional and hydrational needs were met. There was regular involvement from health and social care professionals, who spoke positively about the support people received.

We observed a kind and caring culture. Relatives and professionals spoke positively about the support staff gave to people. We observed positive interactions between people and staff throughout the inspection.

People’s care plans were personalised and gave staff the information they needed to support people. Staff received training and support from the provider’s positive behaviour support team which ensured there was a person-centred approach to supporting people. Health care professional input was accessed when required and people’s nutrition and hydration needs were met. We saw people were supported with their communication needs and their preferred activities in accordance with their care plans.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 1 December 2020. This is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was the first inspection for this service.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.