Westbrooke Grange

Updated 19 February 2021

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.

As part of CQC’s response to the coronavirus pandemic we are looking at the preparedness of care homes in relation to infection prevention and control. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection control and prevention measures the provider has in place.

This inspection took place on 1 February 2021 and was announced.

Updated 19 February 2021

About the service

Westbrooke Grange is a residential care home registered to provide care and support to five people who may have Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and/or mental health needs. At the time of the inspection there were four people living at the service.

Westbrook Grange is owned and operated by Modus Care Limited. The provider has over 50 small residential facilities for adults aged 18 to 65, as well as bespoke, individually tailored services for people with ASD across England.

The service comprised of five individual flats, with a shared kitchen and lounge. At the time of our inspection the service was undergoing substantial building work to help improve the design and adaptation of the premises.

The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.

The Secretary of State has asked the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to conduct a thematic review and to make recommendations about the use of restrictive interventions in settings that provide care for people with or who might have mental health problems, learning disabilities and/or autism. Thematic reviews look in-depth at specific issues concerning quality of care across the health and social care sectors. They expand our understanding of both good and poor practice and of the potential drivers of improvement.

As part of thematic review, we carried out a survey with the registered manager at this inspection. This considered whether the service used any restrictive intervention practices (restraint, seclusion and segregation) when supporting people.

The service used some restrictive intervention practices as a last resort, in a person-centred way, in line with positive behaviour support principles.

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

People were supported by kind and caring staff, who promoted their independence. People were supported to remain safe, but without unnecessary restrictions being imposed on them.

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.

People’s health and social care needs were robustly assessed, with their care and support being delivered in a person-centred way; keeping the person at the heart of their own care. Involvement by external professionals ensured people’s needs were managed in a holistic and multi-disciplinary way.

Staff received good support and relevant training to be able to meet people’s individual needs. New staff joining the organisation were inducted to the providers ethos of, “To enable people to have a fulfilling and purposeful life’ and policies and procedures”.

The manager was a role model and ensured the culture of the service was based on the providers values of, “Respect, choice, empowerment, and inclusion”.

Governance systems ensured improvements were highlighted so action could be taken promptly. Incident and accident reports were reviewed, and themes and trends were analysed to ensure the culture at the service relating to restrictive practices was appropriate.

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 Good (published 25 July 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

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.