Archived: Connaught House

Updated 24 January 2017

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, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 14 December 2016 and was announced. We gave the provider short notice of this inspection in line with our published methodology for inspecting domiciliary care providers. The inspection team was made up of one inspector.

Before the inspection we reviewed information we held about the service. This included notifications the provider had sent us and information received from other parties. The provider had sent us a Provider Information Record (PIR). A PIR is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

Two of the three people receiving a personal care service had complex communication and as such we did not speak with them. However one person could tell us how they experienced care. During our inspection we spoke with the person and five members of staff. The registered manager was not available when we visited but we spoke with the deputy manager who was managing the service. We looked at records related to three people’s care and reviewed records relating to the running of the service. This included staff training and employment records and policies and procedures.

Updated 24 January 2017

Connaught House provides care and support for people in their own homes. At the time of our inspection, three people had received a registered service. The service primarily supported people living with a disability..

There was a registered manager in post. 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 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. However, the registered manager was on maternity leave. The provider had informed us of this and the deputy manager was managing the service during this period of leave.

Staff understood the importance of people consenting to the care they provided and encouraged choice making. They understood the importance of enabling people to make their own decisions wherever possible and seeking the involvement of appropriate people when making decisions to provide care in a person’s best interests if they were not able to give consent themselves.

People told us they felt safe and well cared for. They were protected from harm because staff understood the risks they faced and how to reduce these risks. They also knew how to identify and respond to abuse.

There were systems in place to ensure medicines were administered safely.

Staff were consistent in their knowledge of people's needs and spoke with confidence about the care they provided to meet these needs. Care and treatment was delivered in a way that met needs and promoted independence and dignity. Staff kept accurate records about the support they provided.

There were enough safely recruited staff to ensure the care could be provided. Staff told us they felt supported in their roles and had received training that provided them with the necessary knowledge and skills to do their job effectively.

People had access to health care professionals and was supported to maintain their health by staff. Staff understood the need to share information about changes in people’s health.

People were positive about the care they received and told us the staff were nice. Staff treated people and each other with respect and kindness.

There were systems in place to monitor the quality of the service and people were encouraged to contribute to the management of the service.