Chescombe

Chescombe is a 'care home'. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Chescombe accommodates 19 people across three separate houses called Treetops, Lavender and Orchard. In addition there are three self-contained flats.

The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.

At our last inspection we rated the service good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of good and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

There was 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.

People received a safe service. There were sufficient staff to meet the needs of people they supported and to enable them to carry out a variety of activities. People received safe support with their medicines. Staff understood the importance of safeguarding people from abuse and reporting any concerns they had.

Staff were knowledgeable about people's health needs and worked with other health and social care professionals to ensure these needs were met. People were given choices and asked for their opinions on meal choices. Staff were knowledgeable about the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and incorporated the principles of this legislation in to their practice.

We saw that strong relationships had been formed between people using the service and staff. People shared good humour with staff and we saw that people were content and settled in their company. People were supported to maintain contact with their families.

People were given opportunity to take part in a range of activities. The service hired a local hall for activities such as cooking and fundraising events. During our visit, we saw Halloween crafts taking place. There were

systems in place for managing and responding to people's complaints.

The service was well led. There was a registered manager in place supported by individual house managers. There were systems in place to monitor the quality and safety of the service provided. People were given opportunity to provide their views and opinions on the service they received.

The five questions we ask about services and what we found