Cliff House Care Home

Updated 11 December 2018

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 comprehensive inspection took place on 16 November 2018 and was unannounced. The inspection was carried out by two inspectors

The inspection was informed by the Provider Information Return. This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We also reviewed information we held about the service. This included statutory notifications the registered manager had sent us. A statutory notification is information about important events which the provider is required to send to us by law. We used all this information to inform our inspection plan.

We spoke with six people that were using the service and five people’s relatives. We also spoke with the area manager, registered manager, deputy manager, three care staff, the activities coordinator, a member of the catering team and a member of the laundry team.

We looked at three people’s care records to check that the care they received matched the information in their records. We reviewed two staff files to see how staff were recruited. We looked at the systems the provider had in place to ensure the quality of the service was continuously monitored and reviewed to drive improvement.

We asked the registered manager to email copies of their training and staff supervision matrix, their refurbishment plan and newsletters, so that we could see how the provider monitored the service to drive improvements. The registered manager sent these to us within the required timeframe.

Updated 11 December 2018

We inspected Cliff House Care Home on 16 November 2018. The service is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Cliff House Care Home provides personal care and accommodation for up to 40 people in one single building with bedrooms over two floors. The service provides a permanent residence for people and short-term care beds are available for people to access. On the day of our visit 30 people were using the service.

This is the first inspection since the provider registered at this location on 29 August 2017.

The service had 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 were supported by sufficient numbers of trained staff who were available to meet their individual needs. People received support from staff who understood their role in protecting them from the risk of harm and reporting any concerns. People were supported to keep safe as individual and environmental risks were assessed and managed. People were supported in a safe way to take their prescribed medicine. The staff’s suitability to work with people was established before they commenced employment. Systems were in place to guide staff on the prevention and control of infection.

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. People and their representatives were involved in their care to enable them to make decisions about how they wanted to receive support in their preferred way. People received a balanced diet that met their preferences and assessed needs. People were supported to access healthcare services and received coordinated support, to ensure their preferences and needs were met.

Staff knew people well and understood the support they needed and their preferences on how this support was delivered. People were treated with consideration and respect by the staff team and they were supported to maintain their dignity. People were supported to maintain relationships with those who were important to them; such as family and friends.

People were provided with opportunities to take part in social activities to promote their well-being. The manager and staff team included people and their representatives in the planning of their care. There were processes in place for people and their representatives to raise any concerns about the service provided.

People and their representatives were consulted and involved in the ongoing development of the service. Staff were clear on their roles and responsibilities and felt supported by the management team. The provider understood their legal responsibilities with us and systems were in place to monitor the quality of the service, to enable the registered manager and provider to drive improvement.