Links Lodge

Updated 23 February 2022

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 COVID-19 pandemic we are looking at how services manage infection control and visiting arrangements. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection prevention and control measures the provider had in place. We also asked the provider about any staffing pressures the service was experiencing and whether this was having an impact on the service.

This inspection took place on 11 February 2022 and was announced. We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection.

Updated 23 February 2022

Links Lodge is a detached house situated in a residential area of North Shore, Blackpool. The home is registered to accommodate up to 10 adults, with a learning disability who require assistance with personal care. The home specialises in supporting people with learning disabilities who are living with dementia. Most rooms were single occupancy, with one double room available for those wishing to share facilities. Some rooms had en-suite bathrooms, and communal bathing facilities and toilets were available throughout the home. There were gardens to the front, side and rear of the house.

The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.

The inspection visit took place on 04 October 2018 and was unannounced. At the time of the inspection 10 people lived at the home.

At our last inspection we rated the service Outstanding. On this inspection, we found the service had remained Outstanding. We found the evidence continued to support the rating of Outstanding and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and on-going monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

The registered provider was an individual who also managed the home on a day to day basis. Registered providers are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

Most people had complex needs and were unable to tell us their experiences at Links Lodge. People able to speak with us and their relatives were very praising of the staff team. They told us they felt exceptionally safe and looked after by staff. We observed interactions between staff and people. These were frequent and friendly. It was clear from these interactions, people who lived at Links Lodge were the central focus of the staff team and were supported to have an excellent quality of life.

The service had built on their previous success and sustained the outstanding model of care and support provided to people living in the home. The registered provider and staff team continued to find ways to improve the service and remained focused and enthusiastic in the way they provided innovative care to the people they supported.

Staff had an excellent appreciation of people's individual needs and continued to be inventive in the ways they provided care and interaction. These included introducing a Danish concept for creating happiness and well-being called Hygge and ‘The Night Owl’ club. The systems used identified how to deliver an activity in a meaningful way. This information encouraged positive responses and created ‘golden moments’ which preserved and promoted continued well-being.

Social and leisure activities were many and varied and met people’s individual preferences. People were encouraged to be part of their local community and integrate into community groups in the area.

The exceptionally well managed and flexible staffing levels and skills met people’s needs and wishes. Recruitment was thorough and effective in appointing staff with the right qualities to give exceptional care. Staff support and supervision was frequent and training was in-depth, interactive and inventive.

People were actively involved in the decoration of their rooms which were geared around their needs and preferences. The house was clean, well maintained and homely. Many dementia friendly design features, such as sensory lights, projectors and themed wall art were incorporated into the décor. Specialist equipment was in place such as pressure mattresses and hospital beds where needed and all bedrooms were personalised. Since the last inspection the gardens had been remodelled and made more wheelchair and dementia friendly which had increased their use significantly.

People’s health needs were pro-actively met and any changes in health managed well. We saw people had access to healthcare professionals and staff referred people to health professionals such as GP’s dentist and district nurses as needed. Links Lodge had its own full time occupational therapist. They led on carrying out assessments of physical, communication, interaction and cognitive skills and staff training in these areas. People had routine access to their support around correct posture and positioning, particularly important where people had swallowing difficulties. One person was able to be discharged from hospital quickly as they did not have to wait for assessments for equipment to be carried out and equipment was quickly arranged.

Staff understood the importance of supporting people to have a comfortable, pain free and peaceful end of life and to support their family other residents and each other.

People told us they enjoyed their meals and were encouraged to choose what they wanted to eat and drink. Staff continued to use innovative methods to enable people to have a varied, interesting and nutritious diet and eat and drink well. This included using picture menus and food DVD’s, food sounds and smells and showing people different drinks and meals. Staff continued to support people with special low-fat diets, fortified diets and soft diets and used specialist high calorie food shaped moulds so the soft diet kept their shape and remained appetising.

The occupational therapist had designed a custom-made electronic care system personalised to the people they supported. It was easy to navigate and understand and could be easily modified in house as and when needed. Additional information photographs and DVD’s could be added to the care records to show staff specific care for individuals. We saw risk assessments had been developed to minimise the potential risk of harm to people. These had been kept under review and personalised to meet people’s needs. Care plans demonstrated in detail how people communicated.

Medicines were managed appropriately. They were given as prescribed and stored and disposed of correctly. There were procedures in place to protect people from abuse and unsafe care. We saw risk assessments had been developed to minimise the potential risk of harm to people.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. The policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

We looked around the building and found it had been maintained, was clean and hygienic and a safe place for people to live. Equipment had been serviced and maintained as required. There were safe infection control procedures and practices and staff had received infection control training.

People who lived at Links Lodge, their relatives and staff were positive about the management support in the home. They told us the management team were approachable and willing to listen. Staff spoke enthusiastically about Links Lodge being a good to place to work where they had the time and support to work together as a team, to provide excellent person-centred care. The registered provider and staff team were passionate and committed to providing an outstanding service to people. They researched and introduced innovative systems to improve people’s quality of life.

There was exceptionally good governance of the service and robust system in place to monitor the quality of the service through audits, resident, relative and staff meetings and surveys. They knew who to complain to if they were not satisfied with their care and felt appropriate action would be taken. People also had information about support from an external advocate should this be required.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.