Merecroft

Updated 5 December 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.

Inspection team

The inspection team consisted of 2 inspectors and an Expert by Experience on the first day. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service. Two inspectors and a specialist advisor in learning disability carried out the inspection on the second day.

Service and service type

Merecroft 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. Merecroft is a care home without 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. The registered manager was on planned long term leave and will be deregistering with CQC. A new manager was in post and will be applying to register with CQC.

Notice of inspection

The inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority who work with the service. We also requested feedback from Healthwatch to obtain their views of the service. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. 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 took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 2 people who lived at the home about their experience of the care provided and 5 relatives. We spent time observing interactions between people and staff to help us understand the experience of people who could not speak with us.

We spoke with 8 members of staff including the manager, deputy manager, operations manager, head of operations, lead positive behaviour support practitioner, senior care staff and care staff.

We reviewed a range of records that related to people’s care and the management of the service. This included 3 people’s care records, which included risk assessments, people’s medication files, 2 people’s epilepsy care plans and 1 person’s positive behaviour support plan. We also looked at other documents such as, training, quality assurance records, accidents and incidents, policies and procedures, and 3 staff files in relation to recruitment were reviewed. The manager sent us documentation we asked for.

Updated 5 December 2023

About the service

Merecroft is a residential care home providing regulated activity personal care to up to 9 people. The service provides support to younger adults with mental health needs, learning disability and/or autism. The main house accommodates 8 people and there is a self-contained bungalow in the grounds which provides separate accommodation for 1 person. At the time of our inspection there were 8 people using the service.

People’s experience of the service and what we found:

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

Right Support: People’s needs were assessed, and care plans were developed with them, and their relatives where required. These were currently being reviewed and updated. People’s safety risks were considered. However, some areas of risk needed further developing in relation to guidance to support staff to effectively record, monitor and escalate any concerns. Cleaning of the environment required further enhancing in some areas, to ensure effective infection prevention and control measures. People were supported by staff that were trained to carry out their roles effectively. 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 enabled people to access specialist health and social care support in the community. Staff supported people to maintain relationships that were important to them and engage in activities they enjoyed.

Right Care: People received kind and compassionate care. Staff protected and respected people’s privacy and dignity. Staff understood and responded to people's individual needs. Staff understood how to protect people from poor care and abuse. Staff had training on how to recognise and report abuse and they knew how to apply it. There were enough appropriately skilled staff to meet people’s needs and keep them safe. People could communicate with staff and understand information given to them because staff understood their individual communication needs. The manager was passionate about enhancing people’s communication further to ensure they had the appropriate communication tools and approaches to fully be able to express their needs and wants. People could take part in activities and pursue interests that were tailored to them. The management team explained their challenges in relation to recruitment, and recruiting staff who were able to drive.

Right Culture: The provider’s systems and processes to monitor quality and safety required embedding and sustaining. There had been changes to staffing and the management team. The new manager and provider had identified some improvements were needed and action was being taken to address these. A local authority visit had identified improvements were required. The management team were working with the local authority through these actions. Management were open and visible and were committed to developing people's care further. Staff knew and understood people well, were responsive, and supported their aspirations to live a quality life of their choosing.

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 12 February 2021).

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about staffing, management and care for people that lived there. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks.

We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from this concern. Please see the safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led sections of this full report.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Merecroft 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.