Hunters Lodge

Updated 23 July 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 Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector and one Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

Hunters Lodge 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. Hunters Lodge is a care home without nursing care. 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

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure the registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

Inspection activity started on 1 July 2022 and ended on 6 July 2022. We visited the service on 1 July 2022.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. 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 also used information gathered as part of monitoring activity that took place on 19 April 2022. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with three people using the service. We also spoke with the registered manager, the deputy manager and three care workers. We reviewed a range of records, including five people's care records, two staff records and various records relating to the management of the service. Relatives of people using the service were unavailable when we called. After the inspection we continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found.

Updated 23 July 2022

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. 'Right support, right care, right culture' is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

About the service

Hunters Lodge is a residential care home providing personal care and support to older people and people with learning disabilities and/or autistic people, physical disabilities and dementia. There were seven people living there at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to nine people.

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

Right Support

The service supported people to have the maximum possible choice, control and independence. Staff focused on people’s strengths and promoted what they could do, so people had a fulfilling and meaningful everyday life. People were supported by staff to pursue their interests. Staff supported people to achieve their aspirations and goals.

The service worked with people to plan for when they experienced periods of distress so that their freedoms were restricted only if there was no alternative. Staff did everything they could to avoid restraining people. The service recorded when staff restrained people, and staff learned from those incidents and how they might be avoided or reduced.

The service gave people care and support in a safe and clean environment. People had a choice about their living environment and were able to personalise their rooms. People benefitted from an interactive and stimulating environment.

The service made reasonable adjustments for people so they could be fully involved in discussions about how they received support, including support to travel wherever they needed to go. Staff supported people to take part in activities and pursue their interests and to stay in touch with people important to them.

Staff enabled people to access specialist health and social care support in the community. Staff supported people to make decisions following best practice in decision-making. Staff communicated with people in ways that met their needs. Staff supported people with their medicines in a way that achieved the best possible health outcome. Staff supported people to play an active role in maintaining their own health and wellbeing.

Right Care

Staff promoted equality and diversity in their support for people. They understood people’s cultural needs and provided culturally appropriate care. People received kind and compassionate care. Staff protected and respected people’s privacy and dignity. They understood and responded to their individual needs.

Staff understood how to protect people from poor care and abuse. The service worked well with other agencies to do so. Staff had training on how to recognise and report abuse and they knew how to apply it. The service had enough appropriately skilled staff to meet people’s needs and keep them safe.

People could communicate with staff and understand information given to them because staff supported them consistently and understood their individual communication needs. People who had individual ways of communicating, using body language, sounds, Makaton (a form of sign language), pictures and symbols could interact comfortably with staff and others involved in their care and support because staff had the necessary skills to understand them.

People’s care and support plans reflected their range of needs and this promoted their wellbeing and enjoyment of life. People received care that supported their needs and aspirations, was focused on their quality of life, and followed best practice.

People could take part in activities and pursue interests that were tailored to them. The service gave people opportunities to try new activities that enhanced and enriched their lives. Staff and people cooperated to assess risks people might face. Where appropriate, staff encouraged and enabled people to take positive risks.

Right Culture

People led inclusive and empowered lives because of the ethos, values, attitudes and behaviours of the management and staff.

People received good quality care and support because trained staff could meet their needs and wishes. People were supported by staff who understood best practice in relation to the wide range of strengths, impairments or sensitivities people with a learning disability and/or autistic people may have. This meant people received compassionate and empowering care that was tailored to their needs. Staff knew and understood people well and were responsive, supporting their aspirations to live a quality life of their choosing.

Staff turnover was very low, which supported people to receive consistent care from staff who knew them well. Staff placed people’s wishes, needs and rights at the heart of everything they did. People and those important to them, including advocates, were involved in planning their care. Staff evaluated the quality of support provided to people, involving the person, their families and other professionals as appropriate. The service enabled people and those important to them to work with staff to develop the service. Staff valued and acted upon people’s views.

People’s quality of life was enhanced by the service’s culture of improvement and inclusivity. Staff ensured risks of a closed culture were minimised so that people received support based on transparency, respect and inclusivity.

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

Why we inspected

We undertook this inspection to assess that the service is applying the principles of right support, right care, right culture.

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.