27 Little Week

We found the following examples of good practice:

Visitors were only permitted by prior appointment. Due to the nature of the small, personalised service the home were able to ensure the person regularly kept in contact with their family and friends in a safe way. Each visit was risk assessed and all parties were aware of the guidelines for safe and enjoyable visiting.

People and staff were being regularly tested to ensure they had not contracted Covid-19. Strict measures were in place to ensure people and staff would be isolated immediately if they had any symptoms of the virus, or if they had tested positive. Contingency and admission plans were clear. People and staff had received their first Coronavirus vaccination.

There was a dedicated, positive staff group who knew the people they supported well. They ensured there was a good range of activities to suit the person’s interests.

Safe procedures had been followed by staff to minimise the risk of transmitting Covid-19. They had good stocks of all personal protective equipment (PPE). There were supplies of PPE available around the home. Staff were seen using appropriate PPE. Staff had received training on donning and doffing and on the coronavirus pandemic from various sources including e-learning and from in-house training sessions. These included regular refreshers and discussion to ensure staff knew what to do. There was a consistent staff team as much as possible.

The person had been supported to understand what the pandemic meant for them using communications they could understand, such as easy read. Staff explained the television news and ensured the person’s wellbeing was positively maintained.

The home was clean and hygienic and easily enabled space to allow social distancing and safe breaks for staff. Detailed cleaning schedules were in place for all areas of the home. All touch points were cleaned frequently including high touch points. Deep cleaning of all areas was carried out regularly. The home was well-ventilated.

The registered manager and providers acknowledged the staff team had been through a very difficult time and supported staff. The provider had sent thank you chocolates to the staff at the home. There was good communication with the provider through regular meetings, drop in sessions and online quizzes to promote positive morale. Counselling was available through the provider if necessary.

27 Little Week is a small care home that provides accommodation, personal care and support to a maximum of two younger people who have a learning disability or autistic spectrum disorder. At the time of the inspection there were two people living at the service.

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

People received individualised care and support from staff who knew them well. People said they were happy and supported. Staff respected people's privacy and promoted their independence.

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.

The Secretary of State has asked the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to conduct a thematic review and to make recommendations about the use of restrictive interventions in settings that provide care for people with or who might have mental health problems, learning disabilities and/or autism. Thematic reviews look in-depth at specific issues concerning quality of care across the health and social care sectors. They expand our understanding of both good and poor practice and of the potential drivers of improvement. As part of thematic review, we carried out a survey with senior managers at this inspection. This considered whether the service used any restrictive intervention practices (restraint, seclusion and segregation) when supporting people. The service used positive behaviour support principles to support people in the least restrictive way.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People's healthcare needs were monitored, and people had access to healthcare professionals according to their individual needs.

People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that was focused on them having as many opportunities as possible to gain new skills and become more independent.

Risks to people were well known and there were robust assessments to address concerns. People received personalised support centred around their support needs, preferences and choices. This was regularly reviewed with people, their relatives and professionals.

People’s medicines were managed, stored and administered safely and appropriately by staff who had been trained and assessed as competent to do so.

Staff were recruited safely and there were sufficient numbers of staff deployed to meet people's needs. Staff told us they felt supported and we saw evidence staff had received an induction, training and ongoing supervision.

There were effective quality assurance systems in place to assess, monitor and improve the quality and safety of the service provided.

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

Rating at last

This service was registered with us on 23/10/2018 and this is the first inspection.

Why we inspected

This was the first inspection of the home since it registered with the Care Quality Commission.

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.