Aroha House Limited

Aroha House is a supported living service for five people with learning disabilities. It is in a residential area in Exeter. People are supported to be independent and take part in activities within the community. People who use the service are supported with some aspects of personal care. People's care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate the premises used for supported living; this inspection only looked at those people's personal care and support.

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.

Rating at last inspection

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.

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Why the service is rated Good.

People were supported by a staff group who knew them well, understood their needs and wishes and worked in a way that ensured a person-centred approach. Staff were skilled in understanding people’s complex needs and individual ways of communicating.

Staff received good training and support to enable them to deliver safe and effective care and support. There were always sufficient staff to meet people’s needs. The staff worked flexibly to enable people to enjoy a variety of outings and social events. This including the provider running some social groups for people with learning disabilities as there were limited activities available for people to have opportunities to meet up with their friends in a safe environment.

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 about abuse and who to report any concerns to. People were protected as the provider had a robust recruitment process which ensured only staff who were suitable to work with vulnerable people were employed.

People’s healthcare was carefully monitored and the service worked in conjunction with health care professionals to ensure people’s healthcare needs were being well met. Risks were managed well and reviewed on a regular basis.

Each person had their own care plan which was written in a format they could understand, with pictures and symbols where needed. Plans detailed what people enjoyed doing and what staff needed to know to help them stay well and safe. This included ensuring people had a healthy balanced diet.

People enjoyed a wide variety of activities which suited their individual needs and considered their diversity.

Staff supported people in a caring and compassionate way. They celebrated people’s individuality and personal achievements. There was a great deal of warm and caring interactions, showing staff and people had strong bonds.

There were effective systems in place to review the quality of care and ensure people’s safety.

Further information is in the detailed findings below

Aroha House is a supported living unit for five people with learning disabilities. It is in a residential area in Exeter. People are supported to be independent and take part in activities within the community. People who use the service are supported with some aspects of personal care.

When we visited there was a registered manager in post. 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 felt safe and staff demonstrated a good understanding of what constituted abuse and how to report if concerns were raised. Measures to manage risk were as least restrictive as possible to protect people’s freedom. People’s rights were protected because the service followed the appropriate legal processes. Medicines were safely managed on people’s behalf.

Care files were personalised to reflect people’s personal preferences. Their views and suggestions were taken into account to improve the service. They were supported to maintain a balanced diet, which they enjoyed. Health and social care professionals were regularly involved in people’s care to ensure they received the care and treatment which was right for them.

Staff relationships with people were caring and supportive. Staff were motivated and inspired to offer care that was kind and compassionate.

There were effective staff recruitment and selection processes in place. Staffing arrangements were flexible in order to meet people’s individual needs. Staff received a range of training and regular support to keep their skills up to date in order to support people appropriately. Staff spoke positively about communication and how the registered manager worked well with them, encouraged team working and an open culture.

A number of effective methods were used to assess the quality and safety of the service people received.

We saw there were regular tenancy meetings where people were able to discuss anything they wished.

We saw that people had access to advocacy services and one person told us 'I've got an advocate'. Two people told us 'I'm independent', one person told us 'I choose what I do' and everyone we spoke with said they were given choices about their care and treatment.

People we spoke with who use the service told us 'I prefer it here'. One member of staff told us they were 'interviewed by the people who live here; they chose who worked here' and that 'this is the best place I've ever worked in'. We observed positive interactions between people who use the service and staff and saw that staff were friendly and supportive; people responded well to staff and appeared to enjoy their company.

We saw that some people had bus passes and were able to go out independently. People told us they were helped to be as independent as possible and that 'I do everything' and 'staff help us'.

We spoke with two people who lived at Aroha House. Comments included, "They (staff) are nice, it's my home". Two other people indicated positive feelings about the home to us by use of a thumbs up sign. Two advocates that we spoke with were positive about the service. Comments included, "Very good personalised care. I think it's probably the best supported living service in Devon."

Assessments of people's needs had been completed and care was planned and delivered accordingly. People's needs were reviewed and appropriate referrals were made to health professionals. People's rights were protected when they were unable to make decisions for themselves. Systems were in place to protect people from abuse.

Staff treated people with friendly respect. Aroha House had a warm, relaxed atmosphere. Records showed that people had been provided with information in appropriate easy read formats or videos. People were supported to be independent, for example, in completing household tasks or managing money. People took part in activities in their community.

Quality monitoring systems were in place. Regular group meetings were held to obtain feedback from people using the service. We saw that feedback was acted upon, for example in relation to reducing the impact of one person's behaviour on others.