The Willows

Updated 16 May 2019

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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team:

The inspection was carried out by one adult social care inspector.

Service and service type:

The Willows is a care home. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection:

The inspection site visit was unannounced. It started and ended on 4 April 2019.

What we did:

We used information the provider sent us in the Provider Information Return. This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We reviewed information we held about the service such as previous inspection reports and statutory notifications. A statutory notification is information about important events, which the provider is required to send us by law.

We asked the local authority and Healthwatch for any information they had which would assist our inspection. We used this information as part of our planning. Local authorities together with other agencies may have responsibility for funding people who used the service and monitoring its quality. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion, which promotes the views and experiences of people who use health and social care services. No concerns were raised by the professionals we contacted.

At the inspection visit we spoke with four people who used the service, two care staff, the registered manager and the director of operations. We looked at two care plans and risk assessments. We looked at records relating to the management of medicines, staff training, complaints and quality assurance monitoring.

Updated 16 May 2019

The Willows is a residential care home registered to accommodate up to eight people. At the time of this inspection the service was providing personal care to eight people who have a brain acquired injury.

People’s experience of using this service:

• The provider had taken action to make improvements and comply with the breaches of regulations identified at the last inspection visit. This ensured people received safe care.

• People felt safe living at the home and staff knew how to safeguard them from the risk of potential abuse.

• The potential risk to people was assessed and minimised to protect them from harm.

• People were cared for by sufficient numbers of staff who had been recruited safely.

• People were supported by trained staff to take their prescribed medicines.

• Appropriate systems and staff’s practices helped to reduce the risk of cross infection.

• Accidents were monitored and action taken to avoid a reoccurrence.

• People’s involvement in their assessments ensured they received a service the way they liked.

• People were cared for by skilled staff who received regular one to one support from the registered manager.

• People were supported by staff to eat and drink sufficient amounts to ensure their health was maintained.

• Access to relevant healthcare services promoted people’s physical and mental health.

• The environment was adapted to meet people’s needs.

• People were encouraged and supported by staff to make their own decisions.

• People were involved in planning their care, which was delivered by staff who were kind and respected their right to privacy and dignity.

• People received care and support specific to their needs and were supported by staff to engage in social activities of their choice.

• Complaints were listened to and acted on.

• At the time of the inspection no one was receiving end of life care.

•There was a clear management structure in place and people were encouraged to be involved in running the home.

•The provider’s governance was effective in monitoring the quality of the service and to drive improvements.

•The provider worked in partnership with other agencies to ensure people received appropriate care.

Rating at last inspection: The service was rated Requires Improvement at the last inspection in January 2018.

Why we inspected: This was a scheduled inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to

visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.

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