Hallamgate House

Updated 14 April 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 completed by two inspectors.

Service and service type

Hallamgate House is registered to provide accommodation and personal care for up to seven people with a learning disability or autistic people.

Hallamgate House 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. Hallamgate House 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 service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. This means they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

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

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 24 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because the service is small, and people are often out, and we wanted to be sure there would be people at home to speak with us.

Inspection activity started on 07 September and ended on 20 September We visited the location’s service on 07 and 20 September 2022.

What we did before inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. 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. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

We contacted social care commissioners who help arrange and monitor the care of people living at Hallamgate House. We also contacted Healthwatch Sheffield. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

We spoke to two people using the service. We were not able to speak with some people using the service because we were unable to communicate verbally with them in a meaningful way or they chose not to speak with us. We spoke with eight members of staff which included, the nominated individual, the registered manager, the deputy manager, a director and four care staff.

We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records and medication records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We spoke with four relatives and two visiting professionals about their experience of the care provided.

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records.

Updated 14 April 2023

About the service

Hallamgate House is registered to provide accommodation and personal care for up to seven people with a learning disability and or autism. At the time of the inspection there were five people living at the service.

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

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

Right Support:

People at Hallamgate House were truly placed at the heart of the service. There was a strong person-centred culture that valued the individual and involved people in making decisions about their life. People were treated as equals in their care and treat with dignity and respect. People’s religious, cultural and personal diversity was recognised by the service, with their care plans outlining their backgrounds and beliefs.

The outcomes for people using the service truly reflected the principles and values of ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ in the promotion of choice, control, independence and inclusion. People and their families were seen as the experts in their life with a focus on what they can do first, and any help they needed second. Staff had taken great care to ensure peoples voices and choices were heard and to enable people to build and stay in control of their own lives.

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. The service worked with people to plan for when they experienced periods of distress, so their freedoms were restricted only if there was no alternative.

Right Care:

People and relatives told us the care went above and beyond their expectations. Staff were kind, caring and compassionate. Staff wanted to support people to have fulfilling lives and to see people achieve their goals and dreams for the future. The provider made sure people got all the information they needed in an accessible way for them, to make decisions about their care and support while feeling comfortable and safe.

People’s individual needs were met by the adaptation, design and decoration of the home The service gave people care and support in a safe, clean, well equipped, well-furnished and well-maintained environment that met their sensory and physical needs.

Right Culture:

People's quality of life was enhanced by the service's culture of improvement and inclusivity. The vision and values of the home were understood by staff and embedded in the way staff delivered care. The registered manager and staff had developed a strong and visible person-centred culture in the service and all staff we spoke with were fully supportive of this. Staff told us the management team were very knowledgeable, inspired a caring approach and led by example.

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

Rating at last inspection

A targeted inspection was carried out between 21 September 2020 and 28 September 2020. As part of this focused Inspection, we investigated whether the organisation was safe and well-led. The service was inspected but not rated (published 23 October 2020).

The overall rating for the service is outstanding. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

Why we inspected

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