Archived: Broadacres Care Home

Broadacres is a 50 bed service providing residential care to older people with a range of support needs including dementia. It is divided into two separate units, Rosehill and Clifton. AT the time of the inspection there were 28 people using the service.

The home is located in the Parkgate suburb of Rotherham, South Yorkshire. It is close to the town centre and public transport links.

The service did not have registered manager A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act and associated Regulations about how the service is run. The previous registered manager had left their post and a new manager had been appointed. They were in the process of applying to register with CQC.

We found that staff went about their day to day duties treating people with respect and dignity. We observed a genuine warmth when staff spoke with people and staff told us that treating people with respect was the most important part of their job.

The home environment was designed to meet the needs of people living with dementia, and we saw that further improvements were underway. The home had an activities coordinator who devised a varied activities programme, including activities both within the home and within the local community.

Medicines were stored and handled safely, although we noted some areas for improvement, which the provider addressed immediately during the inspection.

Where people were at risk of harm, or presented a risk to others, there were appropriate risk assessments in place to ensure staff kept people safe.

Recruitment procedures were sufficiently robust to ensure people’s safety.

We looked at the arrangements for complying with the Mental Capacity Act, and found that although on the whole this was adhered to, improvements were required in the way consent was obtained and recorded.

Mealtimes were observed to be comfortable and pleasant experiences for people. People told us the food available was always good.

The management team were accessible and were familiar to people using the service. The provider had a system in place for auditing the quality of the service, and for obtaining and acting on feedback from people using the service and their friends and relatives.

We spoke with people who used the service and they told us that they felt involved with the running of the service. One person said, 'We are regularly asked for our opinion and staff always ask if there is anything I need.'

We spoke with staff who told us that they felt able to raise suggestions with the manager and they felt listened to. One member of staff said, 'I feel that my contribution is valued.'

Before people received care and treatment they were asked for their consent and the provider acted in accordance with their wishes. The appropriate procedure was followed where people were not able to give consent. We spoke with people who used the service and their relatives and were told they could not recall being involved in giving consent to care and treatment. All people we spoke with, except one person said that they were happy with the care they were receiving.

People who used the service had a care plan which was relevant to their individual needs. One person said, 'I'm well looked after here. They (the staff) know what they're doing. I've got no grumbles.'

There were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff to meet people's needs. People who used the service said there were always enough staff around. One person said, 'They're excellent here. Nothing is too much trouble.' Another person said, 'The staff seem more like friends than staff. We're all friends together.'

The provider did not have an effective system in place to regularly assess and monitor the quality of service that people receive.

People were protected from the risks of unsafe or inappropriate care and treatment because accurate and appropriate records were maintained.

At the time of our inspection we found that a manager was in place. The manager was in the process of registering with the Care Quality Commission.