Simone's House

Updated 21 June 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 carried out by 1 inspector.

Service and service type

Simone’s 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. Simone’s 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 provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

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

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the 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.

During the inspection

We spoke with 1 person who used the service and contacted relatives by email to seek their feedback about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 2 members of staff including the deputy manager and a care worker. The registered manager was unavailable on the day of the inspection but we contacted them afterwards.

We reviewed a range of records. These included 4 people’s care records and the medicines records for all the people who used the service. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures, management audits, complaints, staff rotas and meeting minutes were reviewed. After the inspection, we requested and received documents from the registered manager, including staff recruitment records, risk assessments and activities records. We contacted some external professionals but did not receive a response.

Updated 21 June 2023

About the service

Simone’s House is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care to up to 5 people with mental health needs and physical disabilities. At the time of our inspection there were 5 people using the service. The service accommodates people in one adapted building. Each person had their own bedroom and some of the bedrooms had en-suite facilities. People had access to a garden at the rear of the property and shared communal areas.

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

The provider had made the necessary improvements in relation to risks associated with people’s care and health and we found these were managed appropriately. Risk assessments were clear and contained the necessary guidelines for staff. Systems were in place to ensure staff were recruited and deployed safely.

People’s needs were met in a person-centred way and care plans contained details on the support people received. People were supported to undertake activities of their choice and access the community.

People received their medicines safely and as prescribed. Staff received training in safeguarding and knew how to recognise and report signs of abuse. There were systems in place to protect people from the risk of infection and cross contamination.

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’s communication needs were understood and met by caring and competent staff. People and their relatives were happy with the service and did not have any complaints. The provider had systems in place to record, investigate and address complaints appropriately and in line with their policies and procedures.

The registered manager promoted an open and inclusive culture and supported people to remain as independent as they could. People, relatives and staff spoke positively of the management team and felt supported.

The provider worked in partnership with healthcare services and other professionals to share information and achieve good outcomes for people who used the service.

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 6 July 2022) 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

We carried out an unannounced inspection of this service on 10 May 2022. Breaches of legal requirements were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve safe care and treatment and good governance.

We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe, Responsive and Well-led which contain those requirements.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this 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.

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