23 June 2015
During a routine inspection
Pineapple Road is situated in the residential area of Amersham and provides accommodation for up to six people with physical and learning disabilities. The home was originally two houses made into one service. At the time of this inspection there were six people living at the home.
Pineapple Road has a registered manager in place. 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.
The service appeared as a happy, light hearted and caring environment in which people were cared for by staff who knew them well. Staff had a positive rapport with people and we observed laughter and joking between people and staff. People and relatives we spoke with were positive about the service and how their loved ones were cared for.
Comprehensive support plans and risk assessments were in place to ensure people’s needs were met. Health actions plans were recorded for people and where required; people were supported to access health professionals and holistic treatments.
People’s choices and dignity were respected by staff who were kind and caring. People were supported to access the local community on a regular basis and to participate in activities of their choosing. People’s rooms were personalised and disabled access was available to the property.
People were protected from harm by staff who were knowledgeable on how to protect people from potential abuse. Staff were able to explain how they would respond to allegations of abuse and what they would do to ensure people were safe and protected. This included people being protected against unsafe medicine practices and balancing potential risk with peoples choices.
Staff told us they felt supported and were provided with appropriate training to undertake their roles. We observed staff having discussions about their roles and duties with people who used the service which included discussions around the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and Deprivation of Liberty safeguards (DoLS). Where required, capacity assessments were completed and included evidence of best interest meetings.
We found the service to be well-led. Staff members, other professionals and relatives were positive about the management of the service and staff told us they worked well as a team. Monitoring was undertaken within the service to ensure the quality of the service provision.