Archived: Bradbury House

Updated 10 November 2015

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection was carried out by one inspector. When Bradbury House was last inspected in April 2014 there were no breaches of the legal requirements identified.

Before the inspection we reviewed the information that we had about the service including statutory notifications. Notifications are information about specific important events the service is legally required to send to us.

During the inspection we spoke with three people who lived at Bradbury House, the registered manager and three staff. This included the registered manager and support staff. Following the inspection we spoke with two people’s relatives. We were unable to speak with all of the people in the service as some people did not communicate verbally and one person was away for the weekend with family. We used a number of different methods to help us understand people’s experiences of the service which included undertaking observations. We reviewed four people’s care and support records.

We looked at records relating to the management of the service such as the staffing rota, policies, incident and accident records, recruitment and training records, meeting minutes and audit reports.

Updated 10 November 2015

We carried out this inspection on 17 October 2015 and this was an announced inspection. The registered manager was given short notice of the inspection because we needed to be sure senior staff would be available to assist with the inspection process. When Bradbury House was last inspected in April 2014 there were no breaches of the legal requirements identified.

Bradbury House provides accommodation and personal care for up to 15 people. 11 people are accommodated in the main house and there is a smaller property with places for four people. The service provides support to people with learning disabilities and to people who have a diagnosis which falls within the autism spectrum. At the time of our inspection there were 10 people using the service.

A registered manager was in post at the time of our inspection. 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 were safe and relatives felt people using the service were safe. Staff understood how to identify and report actual or suspected abuse and were aware of external agencies they could contact. Safe recruitment processes were completed and staffing levels met people’s assessed needs.

Risks to people’s safety were assessed and appropriate guidance was produced to ensure people could be as independent as possible. The provider had systems to monitor the environment and incidents and accidents were reviewed to establish patterns or trends. People received their medicines on time and medicines were stored correctly. Medicines records had been completed accurately.

People received effective care from staff at the service. There were reviews of people’s health and people could see healthcare professionals when required. The registered manager spoke of a good relationship with people’s GP and explained how this helped provide co-ordinated care. People were supported to eat and drink and prescribed nutritional supplements were received by people where required.

Staff understood their obligations under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and training had been provided. The registered manager was aware of their legal responsibilities in regard to the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and some DoLS applications had been made. Staff received appropriate training and were supported through a regular supervision process. An induction period was undertaken by new staff when they commenced employment.

Staff cared for people well and there were positive interactions observed during the inspection. People had the opportunity to be independent and their privacy was respected by staff. Staff understood people’s needs well and people’s relatives spoke positively of the staff at the service.

The service was responsive to people’s needs and people made choices about their daily lives. People discussed the level of support they required from staff and where possible, some people were actively involved in helping around the service.

People took part in a variety of activities in the home and in the community on a regular basis. Care plan reviews were completed and the registered manager had introduced an innovative way to involve people in their care reviews. The provider had a complaints procedure available.

Staff spoke positively about the registered manager and there were ways to communicate key messages to staff. An auditing system to monitor the service provision and safety was in operation. The provider had plans to undertake renovation work for the benefit of the people at the service.