Breton Court

Updated 25 March 2023

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by 1 inspector.

Service and service type

Breton Court is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Breton Court is a care home without nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced on 5 January 2023. However, people at the service had COVID and consequently we were unable to complete the inspection. We returned to the service to complete the inspection on 7 February 2023 once we were able to ensure the safety of people using the service. Therefore, our inspection activity started on 5 January 2023 and ended on 10 February 2023.

What we did before the inspection

We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make.

During the inspection

We spoke with 8 people and 2 relatives about their experiences of care and the management of the service. We reviewed the care and medicine records of 5 people. We viewed various documents relating to the management of the service. This included risk assessments, action plans and meeting minutes. We observed staff providing care and support.

We spoke with 7 staff including care staff, registered manager and 2 directors of the service.

Updated 25 March 2023

About the service

Breton Court is a residential care home for older people. They provide the regulated activity of accommodation for people who require personal care to up to 28 people. The home provides support to older people in an adapted building. At the time of our inspection there were 26 people using the service.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. Right support, right care, right culture is the statutory guidance which supports CQC to make assessments and judgements about services providing support to people with a learning disability and/or autistic people. We considered this guidance as there were people using the service who have a learning disability and or who are autistic.

Right Support: People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. A relative told us, “There are no problems turning up ad hoc. They (the staff) are always happy”. We observed people had a choice about their living environment and were able to personalise their rooms. People told us, “I love it here. I have all my bits and pieces. I even love my curtains.” Staff told us, “We have a family atmosphere.”

Right Care: People received kind and compassionate care. We received positive feedback from people about the care they received. People told us they were looked after well, and the staff were kind. Staff were responsive to people’s needs and there was evidence of partnership working with health care professionals. Staff understood people’s individual communication needs.

Right Culture: Systems and processes designed to provide management oversight of risks were not consistently employed. However, the provider and registered manager were responsive to feedback and committed to making improvements. People’s quality of life was enhanced by the service’s culture of improvement and inclusiveness. Relatives told us, staff were warm, helpful and their kindness overwhelming. We observed staff speaking warmly and affectionately with people and they reciprocated. People received consistent care and support from staff who knew them well.

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

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was good (published 31 July 2018).

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service.

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service remains good based on the findings of this inspection.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Breton Court on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.