During an assessment under our new approach
About the service
The service is a care home. There were 4 people living the service at the time of the inspection.
Who the service is for
The service supports people with learning disabilities and autistic people. People had their individual, personalised rooms, and there was a shared kitchen, lounge and dining area. This helped create a familiar home environment where people were supported in a more personal and flexible way.
Key findings
We carried out this assessment between 4 August and 2 September 2026. We visited the service on 4 August and 17 August 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 most people take for granted. We found the provider was meeting the principles of ‘Right support, right care, right culture.’ People were supported to express their views in various ways, members of staff respected people’s choices, and they encouraged and supported people to lead as fulfilled a life as possible.
The provider had processes in place to record, review and analyse accidents and incidents to identify lessons learned. People told us they felt safe living in Little Arches. There were policies and procedures in place to keep people safe and to report concerns. A member of staff told us, “If I suspected abuse, I would report it to my manager. If it involved my manager, I would report to the local authority safeguarding team and CQC. We also have information around the home about abuse and who to contact.” 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. We found members of staff and leaders worked in line with the MCA. People were not subject to unlawful or excessive restrictions they had choice, control and freedom over their lives. Risks associated with people’s care needs were assessed and mitigated. We provided feedback to the registered manager about the inclusion of behaviour-specific risk assessments and care plans. Action was taken which mitigated any on-going risk. The care environment was clean and well-maintained. We did, however, identify some areas for improvement linked to processes for recording environment checks to ensure the service was safe. We discussed this with the registered manager, and they took immediate and appropriate action which mitigated risk. There were sufficient members of staff on duty to meet people’s needs and provide effective care and support. Members of staff were recruited safely. People who lived in the care home took an active role in the recruitment process and made recommendations and decisions about the appointment of new members of staff. Medicines were managed safely and people received their medications as prescribed.
People’s care needs were assessed appropriately and reviewed regularly which ensured care and support was provided effectively. We saw evidence people were involved in meal planning, shopping and food preparation. People received nutritious meals in accordance with their personal preferences. There was regular access to local health and care services. People were supported to attend annual reviews with their GP. People were involved in discussions about consent for care and support. This was recorded in care plans. A member of staff told us, “I ensure people are involved in decisions about their care and understand what is being offered. I explain things clearly and give them time to ask questions and gain their consent before providing care. I always respect their choices and dignity and right to refuse.”
Members of staff were kind and caring. People told us they felt safe with the members of staff who supported them. A member of staff said, “To me dignity means treating every person as an individual, listening to their views and wishes, protecting their privacy and giving them choices. I make sure individuals feel valued, heard and treated with kindness regardless of their needs or circumstances.” Our observations confirmed people were supported to maintain their independence and make choices. People were able to travel independently throughout the local community and attended day centres, groups and activity sessions.
People’s rooms were personalised and people were supported to live their own lives and maintain their independence wherever possible. Members of staff understood how to deliver person-centre care. One member of staff told us, “Person-centred care means treating each person as an individual and putting their needs and choices and preferences at the centre of their care. It means listening to them and respecting their independence and dignity and supporting them to make their own choices and decisions.” The provider listened to people’s feedback about the service. There was clear information available to people which explained how they could make a complaint or raise concerns. People were supported to engage in a range of different activities both in their home and in the local community. People’s learning disabilities and/or autism were not a barrier to living their lives to the fullest extent possible.
There was a small staff team in place who knew the people they supported. Members of staff told us they were supported by the registered manager. One member of staff said, “The [registered manager] is very supportive. I can approach them with any problems or concerns. [The registered manager] goes above and beyond for the staff team and people. [The registered manager] gives the staff team and people full support.” A system of audits and reviews were in place so the registered manager could maintain an overview of quality in the service. These systems would benefit from more effective organisation, and we provided this feedback to the registered manager. Feedback from local partners echoed our reflections, “Little Arches is a caring, person-centred and well-run service with strong outcomes for the people they support, particularly around independence, involvement, dignity and community participation. Most improvement areas relate to documentation rather than concerns about the quality of care being delivered.” The registered manager demonstrated a commitment to learning and development to support the continuous improvement of the service.