Ashgate House Care Home

Updated 8 March 2023

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.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector who was also a registered nurse, an inspection manager and 2 Expert by Experience’s. 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

Ashgate House Care Home 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. Ashgate House Care Home is a care home with nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

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 reviewed information we had received about the service. We sought feedback from the local authority and clinical commissioning group who commissioned care with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). 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 used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We visited the service on 27 January 2023. We spoke with 11 staff members including the registered manager, deputy manager, clinical lead, registered nurses, nurse associates, senior support workers, support workers, kitchen staff, and the operations director. We spoke with 6 people who used the service and 7 people's relatives. Not everyone living at the service was able to or wanted to speak with us, therefore we spent time observing interactions between staff and people. We reviewed a range of records. This included 5 people's care records and multiple medicine records. We looked at 4 staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including incident management, improvement plans, and maintenance records were reviewed.

Updated 8 March 2023

About the service

Ashgate House Care home is a residential care home providing regulated activities personal and nursing care to up to 45 people. The service provides support to adults of all ages some of whom were living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 39 people using the service.

Ashgate House Care Home provides care and support to people across two floors in one large adapted building. Ashgate house has multiple communal areas for people to spend their time. Most bedrooms were equipped with ensuite facilities.

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

People were protected from the risk of abuse and neglect. Staff received training in safeguarding and explained in detail how they applied their knowledge. Risks were assessed, monitored and risk reduction measures were in place. Medicines were managed safely, and people received their prescribed medicines on time by trained staff. People and their relatives told us they were supported by kind and compassionate staff who knew them well. Infection control measures were in place to protect people from the risk of infection.

People’s needs had been fully assessed. Induction and training programme's were in place for all staff. A wide choice of nutritious food was on offer and people told us they enjoyed the food at the home. The premises and environment had been adapted to meet people’s needs. 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.

The registered manager was universally praised by staff, people and their relatives for their leadership skills and the positive changes they had made. Systems and processes in place ensured all care plans were accurate and reflective of people’s needs. People and their relatives were involved in planning the care they received. The provider worked in partnership with others to improve the quality of care people received.

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

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was inadequate (published 25 November 2022).

The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

This service has been in Special Measures since 14 September 2022. During this inspection the provider demonstrated that improvements have been made. The service is no longer rated as inadequate overall or in any of the key questions. Therefore, this service is no longer in Special Measures.

Why we inspected

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 24 May 2022. Breaches of legal requirements were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve staffing, dignity and respect, safe care and treatment, safeguarding and governance.

We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions safe, effective and well-led which contain those requirements.

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 inadequate to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Ashgate House Care Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.