We met with people who lived at Kempsfield during our visit. Six people were able to share their views and experiences with us about the service that they received. Some people were not able to do so and therefore we also spent time observing routines and interactions. We spoke with five staff who were working at the home on the day of our inspection, with two assistant managers and with the registered manager. We reviewed the care and support plans of three people and looked at additional information as detailed within this report.The majority of the people who lived at Kempsfield attended structured day opportunities. People told us that they enjoyed their day time activities. One person told us that they now stayed at home during the day as they had retired. Two people told us that they had been on holiday and staff said that people had had the choice of a break away or some day trips. We saw that people's likes, dislikes, preferences and goals were considered in relation to the care and support that they received. Everyone was treated with dignity and respect and the home had dignity champions within the staff team who took the role of promoting people's dignity within the home.
Kempsfield currently support people for emergency respite. We found that although the home had separate facilities to support people their presence, on occasion, impacted negatively on the quality of life of the people who lived at the home permanently. The manager and the staff team were aware of this and had worked hard to minimise disruption. However they were not always well supported by outside agencies and as a result the risks to one person's health and wellbeing remained a concern for the home. We were also given examples of how a short time at Kempsfield had made a positive difference to people's lives and staff were proud of their achievements in this area.
People were involved in making decisions about how they lived their lives. One person told us that they did not want to go to work and staff said that they supported them to stay at home. Everyone was supported to make choices as far as they were able. We saw that there was a choice of evening meal for people and one person told us that they were having their favourite meal that night. Plans were in place to support people to enjoy their lives and staff were aware of risks, people's rights and their responsibilities in order to enable them to do this.
People were supported by a knowledgeable and well trained staff team who knew their care and support needs well. Staff were offered a range of training opportunities that were specifically designed to meet the needs of the people that they supported.
People were protected because staff were confident to recognise and report abuse. The home had implemented changes in response to incidents to keep people safe.
The home effectively ensured that people's views were considered and listened to in relation to the running of the service. Staff responded to verbal and non verbal communication methods to identify and respond to people's requests.
The organisation had comprehensive quality monitoring tools to ensure that they maintained good quality care.