We carried out a review of the data available to us about St Andrews Drive on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about St Andrews Drive, you can give feedback on this service.
St. Andrew’s Drive is a residential care home providing personal care and support to six younger adults, some of who may be living with learning disabilities and autism. There were six people using the service at the time of the inspection.
The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This 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. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
The service was provided from one house and was registered to support six people. It therefore conformed with current best practice guidance.
The principles and values of Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance ensure people with a learning disability and or autism who use a service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best outcomes that include control, choice and independence. At this inspection the provider had ensured they were applied.
The vision of the service reflected these principles ensuring people with learning disabilities have opportunities and choice and are supported to achieve their aspirations. Staff adopted the ethos to provide person-centred care that enabled individuals to develop skills and behaviours to live independent lives, whatever the level of need.
Some of the people who used the service had complex needs and they did not express their views verbally about the service. During the time we spent with people we saw they appeared comfortable with staff.
The service was very well-led. Staff went the 'extra mile' to ensure people received individual care that helped them develop. Staff supported people to become more independent in all aspects of daily living and they were involved in all aspects of decision making. People said they were listened to by staff.
Staff knew the people they were supporting extremely well. Detailed care plans were in place that documented how people wished to be supported. Staff had developed very good relationships with people, were very caring in their approach and treated people with full respect.
Strong, committed leadership put people at the centre of service provision. People and staff were positive about the management of the service and felt valued and respected.
Information was accessible to involve people in decision making about their lives. People were supported to have maximum 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.
Staff received training and support to help them carry out their role. Arrangements for managing people's medicines were safe. People enjoyed their meals and their dietary needs had been catered for.
The building was bright and well-maintained with a good standard of hygiene.
There were opportunities for people to follow their interests and hobbies. They were supported to be part of the local community and to go on holiday.
The registered manager monitored the quality of the service through audits and feedback received from people, their relatives, staff and external agencies.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk
Rating at last inspection
The last rating for this service was good (published 17 January 2017).
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
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.
St Andrew’s Drive can provide accommodation and personal care for six people who have a learning disability or who have special needs due to autism. It can also support people who have sensory needs and younger adults. There were six people living in the service at the time of our inspection all of whom were younger adults who had a learning disability.
The service was owned and operated by a charity. 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. In this report when we speak about both the charity and the registered manager we refer to them as being, ‘the registered persons’.
Staff knew how to respond to any concerns that might arise so that people were kept safe from abuse, including financial mistreatment. People were assisted to prevent avoidable accidents and there were reliable arrangements for managing medicines. There were enough staff on duty to provide people with the support they needed and background checks had been completed before new staff were appointed.
Staff had been provided with support and guidance and they knew how to support people in the right way. People enjoyed their meals and had enough to eat and drink. Staff had supported people to obtain all of the healthcare assistance they needed.
Staff had ensured that people’s rights were respected by helping them to make decisions for themselves. The Care Quality Commission is required by law to monitor how registered persons apply the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and to report on what we find. These safeguards protect people when they are not able to make decisions for themselves and it is necessary to deprive them of their liberty in order to keep them safe. In relation to this, the registered persons had taken the necessary steps to ensure that people only received lawful care that respected their rights.
People were treated with kindness and compassion. Staff recognised people's right to privacy, promoted their dignity and there was provision for confidential information to be kept private.
People had been gently encouraged to be as independent as possible while also receiving all of the practical assistance they needed. When people became distressed they received the individual support and reassurance they needed. People had been supported to pursue occupational interests and to enjoy hobbies and social activities. There was a system for quickly and fairly resolving complaints.
Quality checks had regularly been completed to ensure that the service continued to meet people’s needs and expectations. People had been invited to suggest improvements to their home. The service was run in an open and inclusive way, good team work was promoted and staff were supported to speak out if they had any concerns. People had benefited from staff acting upon good practice guidance.
We were invited to the college and we spoke with three people about life at the home. One person said, "It's a really good house to live in. Another person said, "The food is really good and the staff are lovely." All three people said they liked living with the other people who lived there.
We saw that people's support plans and risk assessments reflected their needs and were up to date. Staff that we spoke with were aware of the contents of the support plans, which enabled them to deliver appropriate and safe care. The provider had a range of quality monitoring systems in place to ensure that care was being delivered appropriately by staff in line with individual care plans, and that people were satisfied with the service they received.
The accommodation was adapted to meet the needs of the people living there and was appropriately maintained. The home was warm, clean and was personalised to the people who lived there. The provider had systems in place that ensured the safe receipt, storage, administration and recording of medicines.
Students told us St Andrews Drive was a nice place to live. They told us the staff team provided the support and care they needed and had choices in their lives.
Students were able to personalise their rooms and brought as many personal items with them as they liked.
The students said they were looked after well and if necessary visited the GP or other health professionals when it was necessary.
They told us they felt safe living at the service. They also said they would tell the manager or a member of staff if they didn't and were sure their concerns would be dealt with.
Students told us they thought the staff knew what they were doing. Staff were supported by the manager and received appropriate levels of training and supervision to do their job.
Students were asked for their views about the running of the home and reports about the surveys were published.