John Wills House

Updated 11 March 2021

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 25 February 2021 and was announced.

Updated 11 March 2021

About the service: John Wills House is a care home which provides accommodation and nursing care for up to 80 older people, including people living with dementia. The service comprised of two floors. The Willows on the ground floor provides general nursing care to people. The Orchards unit, which was also on the ground floor, provides care for people living with dementia. The Beeches on the first floor primarily provided short term care. This included people receiving end of life care or people recently discharged from hospital who are receiving care and support for reablement and rehabilitation. At the time of the inspection there where 72 people living at the service.

People’s experience of using this service:

People and relatives consistently told us the registered manager and staff were excellent. The home was exceptionally well run. They said, “I have been happy with the atmosphere. Quiet, relaxed and welcoming” and “I would describe this home as doubly excellent.”

People received an outstanding leisure and wellness service which catered to individual interests and abilities. People had a comprehensive and varied menu of activities to choose from and were involved in the development of clubs and programmes within the home.

People were safeguarded from abuse. Staff understood how to identify abuse and how to report any concerns. Medicines were well managed. People received their medicines as prescribed by staff who were trained and competent to do so.

Staff recruitment procedures were robust and there were sufficient staff deployed to meet people's needs and keep them safe.

Risks to people had been identified and actions taken to keep them safe. The service was clean and tidy. Staff used appropriate personal protective equipment appropriately. Incidents and accidents were investigated, and lessons learnt to reduce the risk of further occurrences.

People received outstanding end of life care, which was compassionate, holistic and sensitive. Families were generously and respectfully supported during this time and were able to stay with their relative or visit around the clock.

People received an outstanding caring service. People told us they received very kind and respectful support from staff who promoted their abilities. Staff promoted people's privacy and dignity and enabled them to make choices and have as much control and independence as possible.

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.

We observed consistently kind and compassionate care from staff who were observant and focussed on people's wellbeing. A visitor told us, "The staff are all very kind and polite, and are really very good, nobody here has a bad word to say at all, everyone who works here is very friendly”. Respect for people's privacy, dignity and independence was embedded within the culture of the home.

Staff received excellent support with their learning and development. A broad range of key and specific training was delivered to staff in house and tailored to the needs of people living in the home. Internal progression opportunities and personal development were encouraged and funded by the provider.

People were cared for by well trained and skilled staff who knew their needs and how they liked to be supported. The whole staff group worked as a team to support people in a person centred way. People told us they felt safe and benefited from the development of closer links to their local community, which included everyone.

People had access to plenty of food and drink throughout the day. People told us the food was very good and there was plenty of choice. Meals were appetising and served in a calm and organised manner.

Provider oversight was embedded in the governance of the home. There was a strong culture of joint ownership within the whole staff team and senior management to achieve exceptional outcomes for people through effective team work, feedback, governance and improvement.

The provider's quality assurance processes were effective and there was a focus on continuous improvement. The registered manager provided good support for staff to be able to do their job effectively.

John Wills House met the characteristics of Outstanding in Caring, Responsive and Well Led.

Rating at last inspection: John Wills House was previously rated as ‘Good.’ Overall. Outstanding in Well-Led. (Published on the 22 March 2017).

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection that was scheduled to take place in line with Care Quality Commission scheduling guidelines for adult social care services.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor the service through the information we receive until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme.

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