Enter and View visit to Arabella Drive
What we did
Visiting care homes that do not provide nursing continues to be a strategic priority of the use of our Enter and View powers, as we feel these homes get less scrutiny than other health and social care services.
Arabella Drive provides residential support for young adults with severe learning disabilities including autism, behavioural difficulties and mental health needs. The home has capacity for 8 residents.
We aimed to use observations during our visit to Arabella Drive to report on:
- The quality of individual care.
- The responsiveness of services to individual residents’ needs.
Due to residents having difficulty with communicating verbally, much of the information was provided by the manager and staff, in addition to speaking to 2 relatives subsequent to out visit.
What We Found
From our observations we were impressed with the high level of care provided by staff, and their commitment to accommodating residents’ needs and engaging with them.
This was reflected in the views held by relatives, who believed that their young people had significantly benefited from their time there. In particular, relatives were pleased with the activities provided, tailored to individual needs and preferences.
Our recommendations
Based on our observations and conversations, we recommend:
- The home continues to keep at the forefront of its work the need to maximise the potential of its young adult residents for social and personal development with a view of enhancing their opportunities to the extent possible at later stages in life.
- Arabella Drive continues to give priority to encouraging residents to take as much responsibility for themselves as possible, including involving them to the extent where possible in their individual care plans.
What happens next
The home have now told us that they consider this report accurately represents the home and that they are committed to its recommendations.
