Greyfriars Lodge Extra Care Housing

This service provides care and support to people living in specialist 'extra care' housing. Extra care housing is purpose-built or adapted single household accommodation in a shared site or building. The accommodation is rented or bought, and is the occupant's own home. People's care and housing are provided under Greyfriars Lodge Extra Care Housing. The scheme has a restaurant, hairdressing salon, communal areas, garden and a guest room.

Not everyone using the service receives regulated activity; CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with 'personal care'; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided.

A registered manager was not in post. There was a manager in post whose application to register with CQC has been accepted and is being processed. Their application to become registered with CQC had been accepted. 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.

Where services support people with learning disabilities or autism we expect them to be 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 other citizen. There were no people with a learning disability or autism using the service when we inspected. Therefore, we were unable to assess and monitor if the service was following this guidance.

People told us they felt the service was safe. Staff had a good understanding of their responsibility about safeguarding adults. Risk assessments were in place which provided guidance on how to support people safely. We have made a recommendation that the provider source and use evidence based assessment tools to understand risk and to implement control measures. Medicines were managed safely. Staff had received training and were observed to ensure they administered medicines safely.

Staff had been recruited safely with appropriate checks on their backgrounds completed. Staff undertook training and received regular supervision to help support them to provide effective care.

People were supported to make choices in relation to their food and drink and to maintain good health.

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. Staff understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) and gained consent before offering support.

The care provided was person-centred and we observed positive interactions between people and staff. Staff treated people with dignity and respect and promoted their independence. They knew people well and could anticipate their needs. People told us they were happy and felt well cared for.

Person-centred support plans were in place and people and their relatives were involved in planning the care and support they received. People's cultural and religious needs were respected when planning and delivering care and staff protected people from discrimination.

The provider had a complaint procedure in place and people and their relatives knew how to make a complaint. People were asked for their views on the support provided. The manager and provider monitored the quality of service to ensure that people received a safe and effective service which met their needs.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

The five questions we ask about services and what we found