Bricklehampton Hall

Updated 9 June 2022

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

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 team consisted of two inspectors and a specialist advisor in nursing on the first day of the inspection. The inspection team consisted of two inspectors on the second day of the inspection.

Service and service type

Bricklehampton Hall is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

The first day of the inspection was unannounced. The second day of the inspection was announced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We also requested feedback from Healthwatch to obtain their views of the service. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with three people who lived at the home about their experience of the care provided. We spent time seeing how people were cared for. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us. We spoke to three relatives and received feedback via email from another relative about their experience of the care provided.

We spoke with ten staff which included the registered manager, deputy manager, clinical lead, nurses, senior carers, care staff, bursar and the chef.

We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at four staff files in relation to recruitment. In addition, we looked at a variety of records relating to the management of the service. We reviewed additional information, policies and procedures and customer satisfaction questionnaires the registered manager sent to us.

Updated 9 June 2022

About the service

Bricklehampton Hall is a nursing home providing personal and nursing care to 40 people at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to 55 people in an adapted building with a purpose-built extension.

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

Improvements had been made and the provider was informing the Care Quality Commission of changes within the management arrangements and of notifiable events which had taken place.

The environment was safe. Improvements in the environment had been made and there was a scheduled of further refurbishment work.

Improvements had been made in medicine management and administration. People received there medicines as prescribed.

Staff were recruited safely. There was enough staff to meet people’s needs. There was time for social interaction and there were designated activities coordinators to assist people to follow an entertainment programme.

There were improvements in quality monitoring and oversight. Systems were in place to monitor the quality of the service and care provided. Actions were taken to continuously improve the service.

The provider had processes in place to protect people from avoidable harm and abuse. Staff had received training in safeguarding and knew how to report any concerns.

People and their relatives were happy with the care they received and felt safe because of the support provided by staff that knew their needs.

People’s care plans were personalised and reflected needs and preferences. Risks to people were identified and recorded so safety was maintained.

Processes were in place to prevent and control infection. This included enhanced cleaning schedules and safe visiting precautions.

People’s needs were assessed prior to moving into the home. Care plans reflected people’s needs and were reviewed at regular intervals.

Staff were provided with training and refresher training and received regular supervisions.

Staff were kind and caring. They respected people’s privacy and dignity and supported people to be as independent as possible.

The provider had a complaints policy in place. People and relatives were aware how to raise any concerns and felt comfortable in doing so should any arise.

People’s end of life wishes were respected. Staff worked with health professionals to ensure people were pain free and comfortable.

The registered manager worked in a transparent way with people, their relatives, staff and health and social care professionals to provide a good quality of life for people.

Staff felt supported by the management team and worked well as a team.

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.

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 requires improvement (published 14 November 2019) and there were 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.

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service and to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements.

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 COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good based on the findings of this inspection.

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

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.