Portelet Cottage

Portelet Cottage is a residential care home providing personal care to up to 16 people. The service provides support to older people, some of whom are living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 16 people using the service.

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

Care plans and risk assessments were person centred. People and relatives told us staff knew them well. Staff supported people in a kind and compassionate way, considering their dignity and with respect. Medicines were managed, stored, and administered safely.

People, relatives and visiting health and social care professionals spoke highly of the leadership and positive culture at Portelet Cottage. People and relatives described the staff team as “like family”. Comments included: “They have become like an extended family and treat my [loved one] like they are part of a big family. They always keep me updated if there are any worries and concerns” and, “They are very good to me here.”

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. Staff had been observed to uphold the rights of people using the service. A visiting health and social care professional stated, “Care staff offer support and respect if this is not accepted at that time, I always see staff return later to try again.”

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.

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 6 October 2018).

Why we inspected

We received concerns in relation to fire safety and people’s rights being respected. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, effective, and well-led only.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.

We found people's rights were being respected. However, the service was working on improvements to the fire safety within the home to ensure they met the fire safety regulations. The provider was working with the fire service and had a schedule of building improvement works in progress.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Portelet Cottage 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.

Portelet Cottage is registered to accommodate up to 16 people. At the time of our inspection there were 15 people living at the home in one adapted building in a residential area of Bournemouth. During our visit another person came to stay in the home for a short break. The home was registered with CQC in April 2018. This was the first inspection of the service.

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 told us they liked Portelet Cottage and they all told us how friendly and nice the staff were. Some people no longer used words as their main means of communication. These people were relaxed with staff and smiled when they heard staff voices or saw their faces. We received positive feedback from relatives and health professionals who visited the home regularly.

People were supported by sufficient levels of trained and experienced staff who had worked to get to know the people living in the home well. Staff understood how to identify and report abuse and were well supported in their roles. Staff received training to enable them to carry out their roles competently.

People made choices about how they spent their day. Staff had a good knowledge and understanding of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and promoted people's independence and choice in their day to day living. Where people were not able to make a specific decisions staff acted in accordance with the MCA.

People's health care needs were met and staff supported people to see healthcare professionals when appropriate. People were supported to take their medicines safely by staff who had received the appropriate levels of training.

People were encouraged and supported to take part in a range of activities within the home and the locality. Photos around the home showed people enjoying these activities.

People and relatives knew how to make a complaint if the needed to and felt any concerns would be taken seriously and action straight away.

There were quality assurance systems in place to drive improvement and ensure people received safe, effective and responsive care.