Avondale Residential Care Home

Updated 4 December 2019

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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team: The inspection team consisted of one inspector.

Service and service type: Avondale Residential is a care home. People in care homes receive accommodation and or personal care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection. People using the service are older adults, some with dementia or a sensory impairment. At the time of inspection, there were 13 people living at the home.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. 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. The registered manager was unavailable during the inspection period.

Notice of inspection:

The inspection was unannounced. We visited the location on the 24 October 2019.

What we did before the inspection:

We reviewed the records held on the service. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report.

We also reviewed notifications received from the provider about incidents or accidents which they are required to send us by law. We sought feedback from the local authority and other professionals who work with the service. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection:

We looked at three people’s care records to see how their care was planned and delivered. Other records we looked at included two staff recruitment files, staff supervision activity, staff training records, accident and incident records, safeguarding, complaints and compliments, staff scheduling, management of medication and the provider’s audits, quality assurance and overview information about the service.

We spoke with five people living at the service and two relatives. As some people were unable to share their views with us, we used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care for people who are unable to speak with us.

We spoke with two care staff, senior care staff member, kitchen staff member, director, deputy and assistant manager.

Updated 4 December 2019

About the service:

Avondale is a residential care home that provides care for older people, some of whom are living with dementia. Avondale is registered to accommodate 15 people. 13 people lived at the service when we visited.

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

People were supported by staff that were caring, compassionate and treated them with dignity and respect. Any concerns or worries were listened and responded to and used as opportunities to improve.

People received person centred care and support based on their individual needs and preferences. Staff were aware of people's life histories and individual preferences. They used this information to develop positive, meaningful relationships with people. Staff were very knowledgeable about people’s changing needs and people and their relatives confirmed that changing needs were addressed.

People told us they felt well cared for by staff who treated them with respect and dignity and encouraged them to maintain relationships and keep their independence for as long as possible. People were supported by staff who had the skills and knowledge to meet their needs. Staff understood and felt confident in their role. People told us the atmosphere at the home was relaxed and friendly. Staff liaised with other health care professionals to ensure people's safety and meet their health needs.

Where people lacked capacity, 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.

Staff spoke positively about working for the provider. They felt well supported and that they could talk to management at any time, feeling confident any concerns would be acted on promptly. They felt valued and happy in their role.

Audits were completed by management to check the quality and safety of the service.

Management worked well to lead the staff team in their roles and ensure people received a good service.

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

Rating at last inspection: The last rating for this service was Good (published 26 April 2017).

Why we inspected: This was a planned comprehensive inspection based on the rating of good at the last inspection.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.

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