Background to this inspection
Updated
17 March 2022
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 how services manage infection control and visiting arrangements. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection prevention and control measures the provider had in place. We also asked the provider about any staffing pressures the service was experiencing and whether this was having an impact on the service.
This inspection took place on 3 March 2022 and was announced. We gave the service 48 hours notice of the inspection.
Updated
17 March 2022
East View Housing Management Limited - 25 Alexandra Road is a care home providing social and residential care for up to three adults with learning disabilities. On the day of our inspection there were three people living in the home. People had varied needs including learning disabilities and challenges to their mental health. The provider operates a number of care homes locally and is also a national provider of care. At the last inspection, the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.
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.
At our last inspection we found some improvement was needed in relation to the monitoring and completion of maintenance within the home. At this inspection improvements had been made in this area, all maintenance had been recorded and addressed promptly. New audits had been introduced to monitor the effectiveness of the systems that had been introduced to address this area. Despite these improvements we identified minor areas of record keeping that needed to improve to document more clearly the running of the home. Whilst staff received training in fire safety, there was no system to test that staff knew how to respond in the event of a fire.
There were good recruitment procedures and enough staff to meet people’s individual needs and wishes. Staff knew how to safeguard people from abuse and what they should do if they thought someone was at risk. Risks to individuals were well managed and people were able to stay safe without having their freedoms restricted. People’s independence was well promoted. Incidents and accidents were well managed. People’s medicines were managed safely.
People’s needs were effectively met because staff had the training and skills they needed to do so. Staff were supported well with induction, training, supervision and appraisal. People were supported to have choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible.
People had enough to eat and drink and had been involved in menu planning and where they chose the preparation of their food. Everyone was supported to maintain good physical and mental health. Appropriate referrals were made to health care professionals when needed.
People were treated with dignity and respect by kind and caring staff. Staff had a good understanding of the care and support needs of people and had developed positive relationships with people. People told us they were happy with the support they received and with their day to day activities. They told us they knew who to talk to if they had any concerns or worries. There was a friendly and relaxed atmosphere in the home.
There was good leadership in the home and the registered manager had an open door policy which staff valued. The organisation had effective systems to monitor and review the quality of the care provided.
Further information is in the detailed findings below.