The inspection took place on 21 March 2017. The last inspection took place in July 2015. There were no breaches of regulation at that time. Hannacott is a care home providing accommodation and personal care to six people with learning disabilities, physical disabilities, sensory needs, complex health issues and communication difficulties. At the time of our inspection, there were six people living at Hannacott.
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.’
People experienced a high level of care and support that promoted their health and wellbeing. People were happy, felt safe and felt cared for. People were 'very happy' with the service they received. We received positive comments about their views and experiences. People told us they felt safe because the staff were "Caring and enjoyed what they did".
People's risks were identified and managed well and their care needs were met exceptionally well. People were cared for by staff who knew them really well and who had been well trained to support people. Where possible, people were involved in the planning of their care. If this was not possible, people's representatives were encouraged to be involved. People's care plans were detailed and very personalised which helped staff deliver the support people wanted and needed. For some people, this had resulted in real improvements to their health and abilities which in turn had meant people had become more independent. People had very good access to health care professionals when they needed this and their medicines were managed well.
Staff were very well supported and valued by the provider who invested well in their training and welfare. There was a strong sense of "family" and team work. Staff were proud of the work they did and were fully committed to ensuring people were at the centre of everything that took place at Hannacott.
People we spoke with told us staff were very caring. Relatives we spoke with informed us the staff showed a high level of compassion towards the people they supported. They used words such as “Compassionate”, “Caring”, “Excellent” and “Highly motivated” to describe the staff. All of the people we spoke with told us they felt staff went over and above what was expected of them and they couldn’t ask for more from the staff. Care staff spoke highly about the service provided. One said, “I love working here”. Another person said, “I am proud to be working here”. People told us they would recommend the service to others. There was a genuine sense of fondness and respect between the staff and people. Staff were positive about the people they supported. One member of staff said, “I love helping the people I work for”. Another person said “It means so much to make somebody smile and their compliments mean so much to me”.
Staff were constantly looking for ideas on how to improve people's quality of life. People's likes, dislikes, preferences and aspirations were explored with them. Staff worked hard to make sure, that where it was possible, people had opportunities to lead as full a life as possible. They made sure daily activities were tailored to meet people's preferences and abilities. Staff made sure people had opportunities to enjoy themselves. People's suggestions and ideas were sought and valued when it came to planning these activities.
The registered manager offered strong and experienced leadership and had a clear vision about the direction of the service. They were highly committed to improving people's lives and ensuring people had the best care they could receive, and expected the same high standards from the staff who were as committed to these values as the registered manager was. The management team was were very much part of the overall care team at Hannacott. They were very involved in people's care, visible and approachable. Staff at Hannacott clearly understood their role and worked hard to promote a homely atmosphere in the service.
There was a robust quality assurance system in place to ensure people received the best possible service. For example, extensive work had taken place to improve people’s mealtime experience at the Home. The registered manager worked closely with partner agencies and services to promote best practice within the service and make a positive impact to people’s lives. The registered manager had developed a strong leadership team within the service to ensure the high standards implemented were sustained in their absence.