Archived: Beech Hall

Updated 20 January 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 21 October 2015 and was unannounced. The inspection team consisted of two adult social care inspectors, a specialist advisor in nursing and an expert-by-experience who had experience of older people’s care services and in people living with dementia. An expert-by-experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

At the time of our inspection there were 51 people living at the home. During our visit we spoke with 14 people who lived at Beech Hall, two relatives, eight members of staff, a visiting health professional, the deputy manager, registered manager and area manager. We observed how care and support was provided to people throughout the inspection and we observed lunch in one of the dining rooms. We looked at documents and records which related to people’s care, and the management of the home such as staff recruitment, training records and quality audits. We looked at four people’s care plans and six medication records.

Before our inspections we usually ask the provider to send us 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 did not ask the provider to complete a PIR prior to this inspection.

Before our inspection, we reviewed all the information we held about the home. We contacted the local authority and Healthwatch. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England.

Updated 20 January 2016

This was an unannounced inspection carried out on 21 October 2015. This was the first inspection we have carried out at this location.

Beech Hall is registered to provide accommodation for up to 64 people requiring nursing or personal care. Beech Hall is purpose built and is located in the Armley area of Leeds. The home is on three levels with lift access and has car parking to the front of the building. There is a selection of communal rooms throughout the building.

At the time of this inspection the home had a registered manager. 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.

There were insufficient staffing levels to meet the needs of people. This was a breach of regulation 18 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. You can see what action we told the provider to take at the back of the full version of the report. Most people living in the home told us they felt safe. The administration and supply of medicines was mostly well managed.

Staff received safeguarding training and were able to identify types of abuse and where they would report their concerns. People’s individual risks had been identified and assessed. We identified some gaps in recruitment checks, although the registered manager agreed to look at this.

Staff had an understanding of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS). Staff received regular supervisions and appraisals. People were given adequate nutrition and hydration and records to support this were robust. People expressed mixed views about the food provided for them.

People looked well cared for and staff demonstrated they knew how to respect people’s privacy and dignity. Staff were kind, caring and compassionate.

People’s care plans contained sufficient and relevant information to provide consistent, person centred care and support. People were supported with their healthcare needs. People enjoyed the activities throughout the day of our inspection. Complaints were recorded and responded to and learning outcomes were shared with people and staff.

The home was light and spacious and was found to be clean and free of malodours. Staff told us the home was well managed and the management team took an active interest in the quality of care people received. We saw there were systems in place to monitor the quality of the service.