Longhouse

Updated 11 May 2026

Date of assessment: 27 May 2026 to 17 June 2026. We visited the service on 27 and 28 May 2026. Longhouse is a purpose-built service which provides accommodation for up to six people. The service provides support to adults with learning disabilities or autistic spectrum disorder. People generally live in their own home with a relative or a carer and stay at Longhouse for respite care when their relatives/carers take a break. There were four people staying in the service at the time of our assessment. There was a registered manager in post.

We assessed the service against ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ guidance to make judgements about whether the provider guaranteed people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted.

During the assessment we visited the service, spoke with people, staff and management. We reviewed 3 people’s care records, risk assessments and medicines records. We also looked at audits, policies and training records.

Staff enabled people to share feedback and ideas, or raise complaints about their care, treatment and support. Staff involved people and relatives in decisions about their care and told them what had changed as a result.

Safeguarding procedures were in place. The service learned from accidents, incidents and events. Recruitment checks had been completed for all newly appointed staff prior to commencing in their roles. People received their medicines as prescribed, and processes for ensuring safe monitoring of medicines were in place. Governance systems were in place to ensure effective oversight of the service.

Updated 11 May 2026

Some people could not directly tell us about their experience. We used a structured observation tool, Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI), to assess whether they received good care. This approach allows inspectors to observe care, interactions, and the environment to gain an understanding of people’s experiences when they are unable to describe them themselves. Through these observations, we saw how staff supported individuals and noted positive, respectful interactions between staff and people using the service.

We observed staff were warm and friendly in their approach and had positive relationships with people. People we spoke with said they felt safe at the service. We sought views from their representatives about the care people received and found people were generally pleased. People were involved in planning their care and had developed good relationships with staff. One person said, “I like the staff team and I feel well supported.”

Relatives were equally positive about the service, a family member commented, “It has been a very positive experience, with kind and caring staff and effective management.”

People received good care and were supported in a safe and clean service. Staff were attentive to people’s needs and demonstrated a good understanding of each person. They organised their time effectively to ensure people’s care needs and preferences were met. People were supported to make choices and access places and activities that were important to them.