Archived: Durlston Lodge

Updated 29 January 2020

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 Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

This inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

Durlston Lodge is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service did not have a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. Registered managers and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we held and had received about the service. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we planned our inspection and made the judgements in this report.

During the inspection

We observed interactions between staff and three people. We spoke with four people’s relatives and with five members of staff. These included, support workers, the manager, the regional manager and the quality manager. We looked at support plans and records for five people, including medicine records and daily notes. We also reviewed records and information relating to the management of the home.

Updated 29 January 2020

About the service

Durlston Lodge is a residential care home providing personal care to five people with autism and learning disabilities.

The home is located within walking distance from the local community. Each person had their own bathroom. One person had a self-contained living space, with their own lounge area. There were communal living and dining spaces, a sensory room and garden.

The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.

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

Since the last inspection, the management team had conducted thorough quality audits and monitoring of the service. A quality improvement plan had been created, with clear timescales for improvements to take place.

Further improvements were needed in reviewing and updating people’s mental capacity assessments and best interest decisions. People were supported to have control and choice of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible. However, the assessments and records in the service did not consistently support this practice.

There were staff vacancies, however work was taking place to actively recruit into these roles. While recruitment was ongoing, there had been improvements in the consistency of agency or temporary staff. Staff were recruited following safe recruitment processes.

People were supported to receive safe care. There were risk assessments in place and staff had received safeguarding training. People’s medicines were stored safely and administered by trained staff.

There was engagement with the community and a broad range of social activities took place. Records showed people consistently took part in activities based around their hobbies and interests. People also went on holiday.

People’s relatives were welcomed to visit when they wanted to. People were supported to regularly attend home visits.

There was a choice of different food and drink. There was a large kitchen and people were supported where possible to take part in preparing food or drinks.

People’s bedrooms were personalised. They were painted in people’s preferred colours, and had pictures or items displayed which they wanted to have in their bedroom.

Support plans and records were regularly reviewed. People and their relatives participated in these and attended review meetings. The support plans reflected people’s up to date support needs.

We observed positive interactions between people and staff. The care observed showed the staff knew the person and their support needs well.

There had been changes in the management structure at the home. However, there were plans in place to promote consistency during the changeover in home manager. The management team were clear about their roles and were promoting a culture of person-centred care and support.

The service applied the principles and values Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These ensure that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes that include control, choice and independence. The outcomes for people using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support by promoting choice and control, independence and inclusion. People's support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible for them to gain new skills and become more independent.

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 requires improvement (published 18 July 2019) and there were breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

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

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.