Cramlington House

Updated 20 May 2021

The inspection

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.

As part of CQC’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic we are looking at the preparedness of care homes in relation to infection prevention and control. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection control and prevention measures the provider has in place.

During this inspection we also checked specific concerns we had received about people not receiving suitable support or in a person-centred way. The overall rating for the service has not changed following this targeted inspection and remains good.

Inspection team

The inspection was undertaken by one inspector.

Service and service type

Cramlington House is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had a new manager who was in the process of registering with the Care Quality Commission. This means that the provider was legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and the infection control team working with care homes in the area. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

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.

During the inspection

We spoke with eight people who used the service about their experience of the care provided. We also contacted seven relatives. We spoke with 12 members of staff including the manager, the deputy manager, housekeeping staff, care staff and administration staff. We also spoke with the provider.

We reviewed records relating to the management of the infection prevention and control and other records relating to the management and quality assurance of the home.

Updated 20 May 2021

About the service: Cramlington House is a purpose-built home which is registered to provide personal care and accommodation for up to 63 people, some of whom are living with dementia.

People’s experience of using this service: People, relatives and professional visitors told us it was a homely home with kind, friendly, helpful staff. People using this service benefitted from an outstandingly responsive service.

Care was highly personalised and tailored to meet people's needs. Care staff knew people and their relatives extremely well. They took care to involve and include them and were highly responsive to people’s needs. The quality of activities and experiences provided by wellbeing coordinators and care staff was exceptional.

The home was safe, clean and well maintained. Staff had received training in the safeguarding of vulnerable adults and knew the procedures to follow in the event of concerns.

The design of the home took into account best practice, particularly in relation to the needs of people with a dementia related condition.

Staff received regular training including bespoke dementia training developed in-house. This had been accredited by an external training provider, and staff demonstrated a good understanding of people's dementia care needs.

People were well supported with eating and drinking and enjoyed the food at Cramlington House.

Staff were very caring and we saw numerous examples of kind and compassionate care.

The provider and registered manager were supported by a carefully selected senior management team, who had various strengths to bring to the organisation which the provider used to full effect.

There was a strong focus on caring for staff to enable them to provide the best care possible. The provider strived to meet their support and development, and health and wellbeing needs, and had achieved bronze and silver awards in better health at work.

The service continued to have a good track record and close links with the local community.

Rating at last inspection: Good (published 20 July 2016).

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection which was based upon the previous rating.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor the service to ensure that people receive safe, compassionate and high quality care. Further inspections will be planned for future dates.

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