Sheringham House

Updated 27 August 2022

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 carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

Sheringham House 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.

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 that 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

The inspection was announced. We gave the provider 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because the service is small and we wanted to be sure the provider or registered manager would be available to support the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed the information we already held about the service. This included the last inspection report and notifications. A notification is information about important events, which the provider is required to tell us about by law.

We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections.

We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

During the inspection, we spoke with the registered manager and four care and support staff. We were unable to speak with people because the person in the service was not at home and was in the process of moving. We spoke with their relative by telephone for their feedback.

We reviewed documents and records that related to people’s care and the management of the service. We reviewed one care plan, which included initial assessments and risk assessments. We looked at other documents such as medicine records, staff training and recruitment records and premises and infection control checks. After the inspection, we continued to collate and validate evidence found.

Updated 27 August 2022

About the service

Sheringham House is a care home registered to provide accommodation and support with personal care for up to five people with mental health needs, learning disabilities and autistic people. At the time of the inspection, one person was living at the home. The home has adapted facilities and en suite rooms.

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 that 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.

At the time of the inspection, the location did not care or support for anyone with a learning disability or an autistic person. However, we assessed the care provision under Right support, Right care, Right culture, as it is registered as a specialist service for this population group.

The service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of Right support, Right care, Right culture.

Right support:

People had control of how their care and support was arranged. People were supported to integrate into the local community and be as independent as possible. They were supported to achieve positive outcomes and one person had recently secured a move to more independent accommodation. They were unable to speak with us because they were in the process of moving.

Right care:

Staff ensured people's dignity, privacy and human rights were respected. People received care and support that was personalised for their needs.

Right culture:

The values and attitudes of staff and managers in the home enabled people to be as independent as possible and feel empowered in their daily lives.

The provider had carried out improvements to the premises following our previous inspection, to ensure the home was safe and secure. Systems were in place to protect people from the risk of abuse. Risks to people’s health were assessed so staff could support them safely. Medicines were administered safely to people. Processes to assess people’s needs to determine the home was suitable for them were more robust.

The provider recruited staff appropriately and checked they were suitable to work with people. There were enough staff working in the home to support people. Systems were in place to prevent and control infections. Lessons were learned following accidents and incidents in the home.

Staff were trained to carry out their roles and received support with their continuous development. People were supported to maintain a balanced diet and their nutritional needs were monitored. People were supported to attend health appointments with professionals to help maintain their health.

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.

People pursued their interests and were supported to avoid social isolation. Systems were in place to manage complaints. People’s communication needs were met. Feedback was sought from people to help make continuous improvements to the home.

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 Requires Improvement (published 4 August 2021) and there were breaches of regulation. We issued Warning Notices to the provider for breaches of Regulation 15 (Premises and equipment), Regulation 9 (Person-centred care) and Regulation 17 (Good governance). A requirement notice was issued for breach of Regulation 10 (Dignity and respect).

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 inspection was carried out to follow up on action we told the provider to take at the last inspection.

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.