Tynedale House

Updated 11 December 2020

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 care homes with outbreaks of coronavirus, we are conducting reviews to ensure that the Infection Prevention and Control practice was safe and the service was compliant with IPC measures. This was a targeted inspection looking at the IPC practices the provider has in place.

This inspection took place on 1 December 2020 and was announced.

Updated 11 December 2020

About the service:

Tynedale House is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care to people who have a learning disability and/or autism, some of whom also had physical disabilities and dementia related conditions. At the time of our inspection 23 people permanently lived there and five people were using the respite service for a short break.

The provider was aware that the size of service does not meet current best practice. They recognise the challenge to deliver high-quality, person-centred care in a large environment which supports high numbers of people. They have adapted the environment to overcome this challenge to enable people to have their own smaller self-contained areas. There were three areas where up to eight people lived permanently. There was also a smaller area where up to six people accessed the respite service. Each area has its own lounge, kitchenette and access to the gardens. People had named these areas after local landmarks. Each area had its own front door access to maintain people’s privacy. The areas were linked by a large foyer, where people could also access communal facilities such as activity rooms and the registered manager’s office.

The provider was committed to developing the service further to ensure they continue to deliver a service for people in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures 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 received planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that was appropriate and inclusive for them.

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

People received remarkable support from extremely compassionate staff, who knew them all exceptionally well. People experienced a sense of belonging and felt safe in the comfort and security of what relatives described as a loving family orientated environment. Staff were incredibly respectful of people and protected their privacy and dignity. Independence was strongly encouraged.

Staff provided extremely person-centred support which helped people to achieve many positive outcomes and significantly enhanced their quality of life. A wide variety of activities were arranged which helped people to pursue their own interests and hobbies, as well as encouraging socialisation amongst people, their relatives and the local community. People also benefited from opportunities to pursue education and work-related roles.

People received a service which was exceptionally well managed by a committed and passionate registered manager. Staff were extremely well supported by the senior management team to provide high quality, person-centred care to people.

The management and staff fully embraced person-centred care and made sure people were at the heart of the service and totally involved in making decisions about their care. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff assisted them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service fully reinforced this practice.

People’s care needs were thoroughly explored and carefully assessed. Staff provided care which met people’s current needs and exceeded their expectations and those of relatives and external professionals. People received timely interventions from external services with whom the staff worked in very close partnership.

Extensive checks and audits were carried out to monitor the safety and quality of the service. The senior management team and provider organisation set themselves very high standards and consistently achieved them through continuous improvements and developments to the service. Best practice guidance was firmly embedded into the service staff delivered to people.

People were very safe living at Tynedale House and relatives confirmed this. The premises were safe, and the home was clean and comfortable.

There were plenty of staff deployed to meet people’s needs safely. Staff recruitment was safe and staff training was up to date. There were lots of additional training opportunities for staff to meet people’s specific and complex needs.

There were thorough risk reduction measures in place to protect people’s health, safety and well-being. People’s medicines were well managed. Any accidents or incidents were fully investigated and reported as required. Lessons learned were shared with staff.

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 27 June 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 Tynedale House until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.