We carried out a review of the data available to us about Housing 21 - Beckwith Mews on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Housing 21 - Beckwith Mews, you can give feedback on this service.
Housing 21 – Beckwith Mews is an extra care housing scheme that provides personal care and support to people. At the time of the inspection the service supported 32 people.
Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
People and relatives spoke positively about the service. They felt it was safe and staff were caring. People told us, “When they [staff] come in to see me, they are always very friendly and ask me if I’m alright. They seem very caring,” and “I can’t fault them because they are very patient with me.”
There were systems in place to keep people safe. Risks were assessed and managed. Staff were recruited in a safe way and there were enough staff deployed to meet people’s needs. Arrangements were in place for the safe administration of medicines. People were safeguarded from potential abuse. The provider learned from previous accidents and incidents to reduce future risks.
An assessment of people’s needs was completed before they received support. Staff received regular training and felt supported. Staff supported people to maintain a balanced diet and to access a range of health care professionals. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives, and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. The policies and systems in the service supported this practice.
Staff treated people with dignity and respect. Comments from people included, “When they [staff] help shower me, they always respect my dignity as much as possible,” and “They [staff] are more like friends.” People were encouraged to maintain their independence where possible. People had access to advocacy services.
People received person-centred care. Care plans detailed how people wanted to be supported by staff with different tasks. Complaints were investigated and actioned. People and relatives had no complaints about the service but knew how to raise any concerns, should any arise.
The service was well-managed. The registered manager promoted an open and honest culture. Effective quality assurance processes were in place. People and relatives were regularly consulted about the quality of the service through surveys and meetings. Staff were involved in the development and improvement of the service through regular meetings.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk.
Rating at last inspection
The last rating for this service was good (published 22 August 2017).
Why we inspected
This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
Follow up
We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.
We previously inspected the service on 22 and 30 March 2016 and found the service was in breach of regulations as some records were inaccessible and could not be located by the housing and care manager or senior staff. At that time the registered manager did not actively manage the regulated activity as they were based elsewhere and only routinely visited the service every four to six weeks.
Beckwith Mews is registered to provide personal care to people living in their own flats within an extra care housing complex. There are 39 self-contained apartments within the scheme and at the time of this inspection there were 29 people in receipt of a care service.
The service did not have an active registered manager. However, the person managing the service had been newly appointed and planned to apply for registration. 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.
Staff we spoke with continued to have a good understanding of how to safeguard people and actively reported concerns. Any safeguarding concerns were reported to the local authority and appropriate action was taken where required.
People had risk assessments in place and associated care plans were clearly linked and updated in line with risk assessment reviews.
Medicines were managed effectively with people receiving their medicines appropriately. Records were complete and up to date. Regular medicine audits were carried out which identified any gaps.
Staff continued to be recruited in a safe and consistent manner with all necessary checks carried out. Staffing requirements were assessed in line with peoples’ needs. From staffing rotas we saw staffing levels were consistent and staffing cover was provided by existing staff.
Staff had up to date training, and competency assessments were carried out in relation to specific areas, including the management of medicines. Regular direct observations were carried out in between supervision sessions.
People were supported to access a range of health care professionals when required, including GPs, district nurses and occupational therapists.
People were supported to meet their nutritional needs, including where people had special dietary needs.
People had their needs assessed which included staff gathering information about people’s care needs and preferences. Personalised, up to date care plans were in place to guide staff as to how people wanted their care provided.
People told us they knew how to make a complaint and would feel comfortable in doing so. The service had not received any complaints in the last 12 months.
A range of regular audits were carried out that related to the care and support the service provided to people living in Beckwith Mews.
Beckwith Mews is registered to provide personal care to people living in their own flats within an extra care housing complex. There are 39 flats within the scheme and at the time of the inspection there were 25 people in receipt of a care service.
The service 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.
During this inspection we found the provider had breached two regulations. Some records were inaccessible and could not be located by the housing and care manager and senior staff. The registered manager did not actively manage the regulated activity as they were based elsewhere and only routinely visit the service every four to six weeks.
Staff had a good understanding of safeguarding and were confident in their role of safeguarding people. Any safeguarding concerns were investigated with the outcomes fed back and practices changed if necessary in order to prevent reoccurrences.
People had risk assessments in place and associated care plans were clearly linked and updated in line with risk assessment reviews.
Medicines were managed effectively with people receiving their medicines appropriately. All records were complete and up to date with regular medicine audits being carried out.
Staff were recruited in a safe and consistent manner with all necessary checks carried out. Staffing requirements were assessed in line with peoples’ needs. From staffing rotas we saw staffing levels were consistent and staffing cover was provided by existing staff.
Staff had up to date training and competency assessments were carried out in relation to specific areas, including the management of medicines. Regular direct observations were carried out in between supervision sessions. Staff told us they received annual appraisals.
People had access to a range of health professionals when required, including GPs, district nurses, podiatrists and occupational therapists.
People were supported to meet their nutritional needs, including where people had special dietary needs.
People had their needs assessed which included staff gathering information about people’s care needs and preferences. Personalised, up to date care plans were in place to guide staff as to how people wanted their care provided.
People told us they knew how to make a complaint and would feel comfortable in doing so. They confirmed they had no complaints about the care they received.
A range of regular audits were carried out that related to the service the home provided, as well as the premises and environment.
People had many positive comments to make about the care they received. One person said, 'They help me when I need it, but I like to do as much as I can for myself and this place helps me do that.'
All the people we spoke with commented positively on the attitude of staff. Their comments included, 'they're very caring', 'the staff are lovely' and 'staff are compassionate and friendly.'
The provider had a good system for managing the training needs of care staff. This meant staff received all the required training before they started work and there was refresher training provided when this was needed.
The provider had a clear system for checking the quality and safety of the service, and this included asking people for their views. Records were up to date and securely stored.
People told us they got sufficient information about the service. A visiting relative commented, 'The manager is very good at keeping us informed. There's a newsletter and announcements about events.'
People told us they kept their care records in their own flats. This meant they could read them at any time.
The people we spoke with made many positive comments about the support they received from care staff. One person said, 'I get help whenever I call for it.' Another person told us, 'It's good to know I just have to press the buzzer and they make sure I'm alright. They're all nice.'
People talked about the recent staff changes which had meant all care staff were new to them. People commented they were 'getting used' to the new staff. Several people said it was difficult to get to know the staff's names because they did not have name badges yet.
People and visiting relatives said they knew how to make a complaint if they had any concerns. One person told us, 'I feel very safe here. It's good to know they are in the building if I need them.'