Sunnyside

Updated 22 October 2020

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by two inspectors, one working remotely and one on site.

Service and service type

Sunnyside is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had employed a manager, but they were not registered with CQC; they will be referred to as the ‘manager’ throughout this report. This means that only the provider is legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was to ascertain any health and safety information in relation to COVID-19.

What we did before inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.

We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with one person who used the service and observed the care and support the second person received. We spoke with the operations manager. We made observations on the environment and viewed care and support records for both people who used the service; their records relating to medicine administration were also viewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at a number of management records including policies and procedures, staff recruitment records, quality assurance documents and maintenance checks. We spoke with one professional who regularly visited the service and two relatives. Five staff were also spoken with including the manager, one senior support worker and three support workers.

Updated 22 October 2020

About the service

Sunnyside is a residential care home providing personal care to up to four younger people with a learning disability, mental health condition or sensory impairment. At the time of this inspection, the service was supporting two people.

The home had been designed taking into account best practice guidance and the principles and values underpinning Registering the Right Support. For example, the home was small and located in a village location that assisted the people who lived there to participate easily in their local community.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

The service had made improvements since our last inspection although further improvements were required, particularly around risk management and infection prevention and control. For example, we found some areas of the home not as clean as expected and staff were not always following the government’s guidance on social distancing and the use of personal protective equipment. Further consideration was also needed in relation to managing people’s risks and staffing gender and levels at night

However, the outcomes for the two people who used the service were good and staff had supported them to live independently. One person said, “I feel happy here, the staff are kind to me.” The relatives we spoke with confirmed this as did the health and social care professionals. Staff supported and engaged with people and helped them live meaningful lives with the support of professionals.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

The service applied the principles and values of Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These ensure that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes that include control, choice and independence.

The outcomes for people using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support by promoting choice and control, independence and inclusion. People's support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible for them to gain new skills and become more independent.

All those we spoke with talked positively of the management team and the improvements they had made. Staff felt valued and supported and relatives told us the home was good at communicating with them. The manager understood their regulatory responsibilities and the importance of leading their staff team. However, the quality monitoring system had not completely identified and rectified the few concerns we found during this inspection.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection and update:

The last rating for this service was inadequate (report published 1 October 2019) and there were multiple breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

This service has been in Special Measures since our last inspection in October 2019. During this inspection the provider demonstrated that improvements have been made. The service is no longer rated as inadequate overall or in any of the key questions. Therefore, this service is no longer in Special Measures.

Why we inspected

We received concerns in relation to the management of risk. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, effective and well-led only.

We reviewed the information we held about the service. No areas of concern were identified in the other key questions. We therefore did not inspect them. Ratings from previous comprehensive inspections for those key questions were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.

The overall rating for the service has changed from inadequate to requires improvement. This is based on the findings at this inspection. We have found evidence that the provider needs to continue to make improvements. Please see the safe and well-led sections of this full report.

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to coronavirus and other infection outbreaks effectively.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Sunnyside on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.