Background to this inspection
Updated
20 August 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.
Inspection team
The inspection was carried out by two inspectors.
Service and service type
Flat C 291 Harrow Road is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates both the premises and the care provided, and we looked at both during this inspection.
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
This inspection was unannounced.
What we did before the 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 reviewed records of recent contact with the service, including information of serious incidents the provider is required to tell us about.
This information helps support our inspections. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
Inspection site activity started on 29 June 2022 and ended on 30 June 2022. This included a visit to the service outside of normal hours. We visited the provider’s main office on 12 July 2022.
We spoke with three people who used the service and attempted contact with two relatives about their experience of the care provided. People using the service who were unable to talk with us used different ways of communicating including body language, photos, objects of reference and communication book.
We spoke with four members of staff including the registered manager. We also spoke with the operations manager and the director for people.
We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI) and spent time observing people. SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us
We reviewed a range of records. This included four people’s risk management plans, care records and medicines records.
After the inspection
We reviewed four people’s person centred plans and care plans. We reviewed records of premises safety, infection control and records relating to staff training and recruitment.
Updated
20 August 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
Flat C 291 Harrow Road is a residential care home providing personal care to four people at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to five 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 supported people to achieve their aspirations and goals.
• Staff supported people to make decisions following best practice in decision-making. Staff communicated with people in ways that met their needs.
Right care
• 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.
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, support and treatment because trained staff and specialists could meet their needs and wishes.
• 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.
Why we inspected
We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service from 9-24 June 2021. Breaches of legal requirements were found in relation to safe care and treatment, person centred care and good governance.
We undertook this focused inspection to check if the provider had made improvements and if they were now meeting the legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the key questions safe, responsive and well-led.
For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.
The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.
You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Flat C 291 Harrow Road on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.
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.