Background to this inspection
Updated
11 June 2016
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 4 and 5 May 2016 and was unannounced. At the time of our inspection there were 20 people using the service.
The inspection team consisted of one adult social care inspector.
Before we visited the home we checked the information we held about this location and the service provider, for example we looked at the inspection history, safeguarding notifications and complaints. We found no concerns had been raised with us about the service.
During our inspection we spoke with seven people who used the service and four of their family and friends. We also spoke with the registered manager, the nurse on duty, three care staff, administration, kitchen and maintenance staff.
We reviewed the care records of four people and looked at four staff records.
Prior to the inspection we contacted the local Healthwatch and no concerns had been raised with them about the service. Healthwatch is the local consumer champion for health and social care services. They gave consumers a voice by collecting their views, concerns and compliments through their engagement work.
Before the inspection, the provider completed a Provider Information Return (PIR). This 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. We used this information to inform our inspection.
Updated
11 June 2016
The inspection took place on 4 and 5 May 2016 and was unannounced.
Benfield Hall provides accommodation for people who need nursing and personal care. The service can accommodate up to 20 people, 18 of which live in the home on a permanent basis and two rooms are kept for people who require respite care. This was the first time Benfield Hall had been inspected since the new provider Jigsaw Care Limited bought the home.
A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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. The manager of the service had applied to the CQC to be registered and was awaiting further contact from the commission.
We found the registered provider carried out appropriate checks on people before they started working in the service. This meant the service had in place a robust recruitment procedure.
The registered provider had in place arrangements to carry out safety checks on the building at varying intervals. For example fire alarm checks were carried out weekly whilst portable alarm testing was carried out each year. Maintenance contracts were in place for the lift and the testing of gas and electrical supplies.
People had in place personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPs) which detailed how people needed to be supported to leave the building in an emergency.
We found there was enough staff on duty during our inspection.
The communal areas of the home were found to be clean and fresh. People were encouraged to keep their own rooms tidy and support was offered from staff to help people if required.
People chose their food from a menu which they had contributed to. We found if one person did not like what was on the menu kitchen staff were prepared to arrange a different alternative meal for them.
We found the manager had put in place communications systems in the home to support improved communication between staff and also between staff and relatives.
Staff told us they felt supported by the manager. Staff had received an induction to the service together with training, supervision and annual appraisals.
We found the registered provider had carried out improvements to both the interior and exterior of the home. People were protected from second hand smoke as a new gazebo had been built in the gardens for people who wished to smoke.
People who used the service were invited to attend a monthly residents meeting where they were asked for their views, their menu preferences and activities they would like to do.
The service supported people to be independent through the use of a communal kitchen, support to keep their rooms clean and tidy and assessments to decide how much a person could be responsible for their own medicines.
We observed staff knock on people’s doors and waited for a response before they entered. Staff respected people’s privacy.
We found people had in place personalised care plans. This meant people’s care plans were written specifically for them and took into account their needs.
The service used the Recovery Star Model to assess with people their needs. The model looks at different aspects of people’s lives and asks people to score themselves. Staff also had scored people and there had been discussions held with people about their needs. People were therefore involved in their care plans.
The registered provider had in place a complaints process. We saw the manager had carried out investigations into people’s complaints and responded to the complainant with an outcome. This meant people could be reassured their complaints were investigated.
People spoke with us in very positive terms about the manager and described them as “Lovely” and “Fantastic.”
The manager had monitored the quality of the service using questionnaires. They had collated the responses to the questionnaires and based on the survey put together a service improvement plan. We saw some of the actions in the plan had been carried out.
We found records used by the service were kept secure, up to date and in good order.
The manager told us they wanted people to feel safe and happy living in Benfield Hall. During our inspection people told us they felt safe and happy living in the home.