- Care home
Helmsley Road Short Breaks Service
Assessment report published 4 August 2026
Contents
Ratings
Our view of the service
About the service
Helmsley Road Short breaks service is a residential respite service providing support to adults of all ages living with a learning disability and autistic people. (Respite is temporary care for primary caregivers.)
There were 8 people using the service at the time of the assessment receiving the regulated activity of personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do, we also consider any wider social care provided.
Who the service is for
This service is a specialist service for people with a learning disability and autistic people. The service uses a household model of care. People have their own private space and share a kitchen, lounge, activity room, sensory room and dining area. This helps create a familiar home environment where staff can support people in a more personal and flexible way. There are 3 bungalows each with 4 bedrooms.
Key Findings
We carried out this assessment on July 21 and 29 2026. This service was previously rated as good. We carried out this assessment to confirm whether the rating of good remains accurate. This report does not provide detailed information on areas where we found practice continues to meet a good standard. Instead, our findings focus on any areas where the service needs to improve or where we found exceptional practice. 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.
People were supported by enough safely recruited staff, who had the skills and knowledge to provide effective support. Staff consistently spoke positively about training and support available to them. One told us, "The training we receive is very thorough and helps us feel confident in our role. If there was ever anything I didn't fully understand or felt unsure about, it was always explained clearly and in a way that made sense to me."
People received their medicines when they needed them. The team continued to embed recent changes to medicine processes after a local audit. Staff told us how they had been supported to improve their confidence and knowledge in this area. We observed staff supported people safely with medicines with a person-centred approach that was consistent with information in peoples’ support plans.
Staff understood their responsibility to safeguard people from the risk of abuse; they were knowledgeable about what concerns they would need to report and to whom. Risk assessments had been conducted to ensure people were supported with their health conditions. The service manager told us they reviewed support plans to ensure they contained relevant information in order to manage and mitigate risks. Relatives confirmed people were supported to manage health risks effectively. One person told us, “They took time to understand (the person’s) cancer and chemotherapy treatment to make sure they get the right care and support.”
People had opportunities to visit and spend time at the service prior to a respite stay, this was part of the assessment process to ensure people were happy. Pre stay calls were implemented to ensure any updates to care could be organised promptly. Relatives told us how this process had ensured people were included in their choice to use Helmsley Road. One relative told us, “I’m so happy with it. I would say to improve - please leave it as it is. The staff are an amazing bunch of people – so patient.”
The service ensured people were supported to have maximum choice and control over their stay. People were at the centre of the planning and review of their support; this ensured they received personalised care in line with their preferences and diverse needs.
People can only be deprived of their liberty to receive care and treatment with appropriate legal authority. In care homes, this can be done through a procedure called the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS), which is part of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA). We checked whether the service was working within the principles of the MCA and how they managed DoLS within the service. Staff and management worked within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA). Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS), authorisations were appropriately applied for and overseen. People were not subject to unlawful or excessive restrictions, they had choice, control and freedom over their lives.
People were supported by caring and compassionate staff who promoted choices in a way people understood. Staff spoke to and about people with warmth, acknowledged their individuality and respected their dignity. People’s independence was promoted by staff to ensure people enjoyed their stay.
People received person centred support from staff who demonstrated an ongoing commitment to learning in order to maximise their knowledge of people’s individual needs, this included some complex communication needs. Relatives told us how managers and staff consistently sought information, worked with them, and health professionals, and how support plans were regularly updated to reflect this learning and any changes.
The provider’s vision was shared across the staff group. This focused on person centred care, choice, independence and inclusion. Managers and staff provided examples which demonstrated how people were encouraged to influence the quality and development of the service. People were supported to engage in meaningful activities of their choice, including gardening, attending fetes, using the coffee shop, and enjoying seaside outings. Staff listened to their feedback on these experiences and used this information to shape future activities and service improvements.
The registered manager and their team fostered an open culture where everyone’s thoughts and feelings were considered. The management team were supportive and approachable, and promoted a collaborative approach to continually learning and improving the service.
People's experience of this service
Not everyone living at the service were able to speak with us and contribute their views because our presence would cause them distress, but we spoke with people who consented to speak with us, and people’s relatives, to understand what their experience of being supported by the team at Helmsley Road Short Breaks was. Where people could not directly tell us about their experience, we used observation and reviewed documentation to assess whether they received good care. This approach showed people were valued, respected, included and listened to, and staff consistently interacted with them in a warm and positive manner. People knew staff and leaders well and felt confident speaking with them, and observations underlined this.
People who used the service were consistently positive about their home and the staff who supported them. One person told us, “(Person), loves it there. We got them in May last year, just over a year now. They’re very welcoming and all very kind. (Person) is always excited to go.” Another relative told us, “The best thing is they enjoy it and really look forward to going.”
People and relatives described caring and compassionate staff and a visible manager who they could speak with at any time.
People and relatives confirmed they were supported to be safe living at the service and staff treated them with care and compassion. One relative told us, “Yes, I feel (person), is 100% safe without a doubt. (Person) is in their 5th year now. I feel I have a really good relationship with the Manager and care workers. They're absolutely amazing.”
Another said, “I have no qualms whatsoever in (person) going there. (Person) is visibly excited to go and really settled.”
People were supported to have the same rights as any other citizen and live their life in the way they chose to. People were supported to engage in activities of their choosing. We observed people being supported to join in social activities and participate in making feed for the birds in the garden. One relative told us, “We had a birthday party in town for (person). They organised the minibus and brought the other service users. There were lots of carers there too. My other children had not really met (person’s) peers. It was a great party and my family all made comments about how fantastic the carers were.
One relative told us that when their loved one’s behaviour changed, staff recognised that something was not right because they knew him so well. They said the service acted as a strong advocate, sharing their observations and supporting them during discussions with the psychiatrist to ensure their concerns were heard. Their loved one has since started medication, which has been introduced gradually, and the relative reported some positive improvements so far.
People were encouraged and supported to identify and work towards personal goals, which were regularly discussed with their relatives and the staff team. Staff provided person-centred support to help people build confidence and develop positive relationships. For example, we observed one person engaged positively and confidently with staff. This represented a significant improvement, as they had previously experienced anxiety and had been reluctant to interact with their surroundings, other people, and staff members. Relatives consistently told us about the positive impact the team had on their loved one’s lives. One told us, “They're just amazing, I cannot fault it in any way, they are marvellous, genuinely make such a difference in people's lives.”
People appeared happy and relaxed during the inspection, with laughter, smiles and positive interactions observed throughout. Staff knew people well and supported them in a kind, caring and respectful manner. People's privacy and dignity were promoted, with staff providing support discreetly, speaking to people respectfully, and helping in a way that maintained their independence and choice. Staff used communication methods tailored to people's needs, including Makaton and objects of reference, to help people make choices and express their preferences.
All people and their relatives spoke highly of the running of the service, they said they felt listened to and the manager was approachable. Relative’s comments included, “They are very nice. If I had any problems, I could talk to them.”, “I’ve been so impressed by the home’s actions, the manager is so responsive,”, and “The manager has taken time to really find out more about (person), I’m so happy.”
Managers and staff worked with people to ensure they had a fulfilling and meaningful life, putting people’s needs, aspirations and independence at the centre of the support they provided.