Polesworth Group 32 Station Road

The service is a care home operated by Polesworth Group Homes; a provider of support for people with learning disabilities. The service, 32 Station Road, provides personal care and accommodation for up to seven people. The home has two floors, with a communal lounge, dining area and conservatory. There were shared bathroom facilities. At the time of our inspection there were seven people living at 32 Station Road.

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

People were relaxed and happy in the company of staff. People felt settled and secure living at the home. People had enough activities to do. Staff demonstrated a kind, caring and personalised approach toward people and gave support when needed.

Risks had been identified and were well managed by staff who knew people well. Risk management plans gave staff information they needed to reduce risks of harm or injury to people.

Staff were trained and offered opportunities to develop their skills and knowledge. Staff used equipment, such as hoists to transfer people, in a safe way.

People had their prescribed medicines available to them and were supported with these by trained staff. Records showed people received their medicines when needed.

People had choices about drinks and what they ate for their meals and their nutritional needs were met. Staff understood the importance of promoting people’s independence whenever possible.

The home was well-maintained and good level of cleanliness reduced risks of cross infection.

The provider was taking into consideration the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance for the accommodation of people with learning disabilities. 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 received planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that was appropriate and inclusive for them.

Staff understood the importance of giving people choices. 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 needs were assessed, and information was used to form personalised plans of care.

There were enough staff on shift to meet people’s needs. Staff were recruited in a safe way.

Staff ensured people were happy with the care and support they received. The provider displayed their complaints policy.

There were processes to audit the quality and safety of the service and where these identified the need for improvements, these were quickly acted on.

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

Rating at the last inspection

The last rating for this service was Requires Improvement (published 17 January 2019).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the rating of the last inspection.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our inspection programme. If any concerning information is received, we may inspect sooner.

The service is a ‘care home’ operated by Polesworth Group Homes; a non-profit and independent provider of support for people with learning disabilities. The service, 32 Station Road, is one of eight services provided by Polesworth Group Homes Limited. The service provides accommodation with personal care for up to seven adults living with a learning disability and complex health care conditions. People in residential care homes receive accommodation and personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection. At the time of our inspection visit, there were seven people living at the home.

The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen.

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.

At our last inspection in May 2016 we rated the service as Good. At this inspection, we found improvements were needed to the overall quality of the care people received. The service remained caring, effective and responsive to people's needs. Some improvements were required in risk management and the quality checks undertaken. The overall rating is now 'Requires Improvement'.

Overall, risks were assessed and staff knew how to keep people safe, but information available to staff about identified risks had not always been updated in a timely way by the registered manager. Improvement was needed in managing the potential risks of entrapment injuries posed by using bed rails.

The provider checked staff’s suitability to deliver care and support during the recruitment process. Staff understood their responsibilities to protect people from the risks of abuse because they had received ‘safeguarding’ training, and knew how to raise concerns under the provider’s safeguarding policies. The registered manager and provider understood and followed their legal responsibilities when safeguarding concerns were identified to them. Overall, the service was clean and tidy, however, there were some risks of cross infection because staff had not consistently taken actions to minimise risks.

There were sufficient, trained staff to meet people’s needs, which had been assessed. People were encouraged and supported to maintain good health through healthy eating. Staff supported people to access healthcare services, and received their prescribed medicines from trained staff. Staff had received training in the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and worked within the principles of the Act. Managers understood their responsibilities under the Act and when ‘best interests’ meetings should take place.

Staff were compassionate, kind and caring toward the people they supported. People’s privacy and dignity was respected and staff took opportunities to promote people’s independence. People and relatives were complimentary about the service and had no complaints. Staff felt happy in their job role.

The registered manager and provider checked the quality of the service to make sure people’s needs were met. However, audits had not consistently been effective in identifying where improvements were required. Feedback was encouraged from people and relatives.

32 Station Road provides care, support and accommodation for up to seven people with a learning disability. At the time of our inspection visit there were seven people living in the home.

The service was last inspected on 5 August 2013, when we found the provider was compliant with the essential standards described in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2010.

The service had a registered manager. 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 were comfortable with the care staff who supported them. Relatives were confident people were safe living in the home. Staff received training in how to safeguard people from abuse and were supported by the provider’s safeguarding policies and procedures. Staff understood what action they should take in order to protect people from abuse. Risks to people’s safety were identified, minimised and responsive towards individual needs so people could be supported in the least restrictive way possible and build their independence.

People were supported with their medicines by staff that were trained and assessed as competent to give medicines safely. Medicines were given in a timely way and as prescribed. Regular checks of medicines helped ensure any potential issues were identified and action could be taken as a result.

There were enough staff to meet people’s needs. Staffing was tailored to support people to maintain hobbies, interests and activities they enjoyed. The provider conducted pre-employment checks prior to staff starting work to ensure their suitability to support people who lived in the home. Staff told us they had not been able to start work until these checks had been completed.

The provider assessed people’s capacity to make their own decisions if it was identified people might lack the capacity to do this. Staff and the registered manager had a good understanding of the Mental Capacity Act and the need to seek consent from people before delivering care and support wherever possible. Where restrictions on people’s liberty were in place, legal processes had been followed to ensure the restrictions were in people’s ‘best interests’. Applications for legal authorisation to restrict people’s liberty had been sent to the relevant authorities in a timely way.

People told us staff were respectful and treated them with dignity. We observed interactions between people which confirmed this. Records also showed people’s privacy and dignity was maintained. People were supported to make choices about their day to day lives. People were supported to maintain any activities, interests and relationships that were important to them.

People had access to health professionals whenever necessary, and we saw the care and support people received was in line with what had been recommended by health professionals. People’s care records were written in a way which helped staff to deliver care that was based on each person’s needs. People were involved in how their care and support was delivered, as were their relatives if people needed support from a representative to plan their care.

Relatives told us they were able to raise any concerns with the registered manager. They felt these would be listened to and responded to effectively and in a timely way. Staff told us the registered manager was approachable and responsive to their ideas and suggestions. There were systems to monitor the quality of the support provided in the home. The provider ensured that recommended actions from quality assurance checks were clearly documented and acted upon by the registered manager as they undertook regular unannounced visits to the home.

People we spoke with told us that they liked the home and felt safe there. Observations we made indicated that people were well cared for, comfortable and at ease with the staff. "I am alright here. I think they do look after me" was one comment made. Another person smiled and nodded when we asked if they were well looked after.

Staff appeared to know people well and demonstrated confidence in meeting their needs. People had care plans in place that contained information to assist staff with meeting their care and support needs. Staff we spoke with knew about people's needs and were able to tell us about them.

Measures and processes were in place to ensure that people were protected from the risk of infection.

Equipment was in place to support the staff with providing care for people.

Recruitment processes were in place to ensure that staff employed by the provider were suitable to work with vulnerable people.