Amber Lodge - Lowestoft

Updated 28 November 2019

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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

This inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

Amber Lodge is a care home for people with a learning disability. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service has a manager in place who is registered with the Care Quality Commission. They and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided in line with the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations.

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. This included details about incidents the provider must notify us about. 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 this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with two people using the service. We observed the interaction between care staff and people using the service.

We spoke with the deputy manager and two care staff. We looked at two records in relation to people who used the service. We also looked at staff files and records relating to the management of the service, recruitment, policies, training and systems for monitoring quality.

Updated 28 November 2019

About the service:

Amber Lodge provides accommodation and personal care for up to 13 people with a learning disability. At the time of our visit 12 people were using the service.

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.

The service was a large home, bigger than most domestic style properties. It was registered for the support of up to 13 people. 12 people were using the service. This is larger than current best practice guidance. However. the size of the service having a negative impact on people was mitigated by the building design fitting into the residential area and the other large domestic homes of a similar size.

What life is like for people using this service:

The service applied the principles and values of 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.

People who live at Amber Lodge have their needs met by sufficient numbers of suitably trained staff. People told us staff were nice to them and this confirmed our observations.

Medicines were managed and administered safely. Checks were carried out to ensure shortfalls could be identified promptly.

Care records were very personalised and reflected people’s needs and individuality in sufficient detail, including the specific routines staff needed to follow. Risks to people were identified, monitored and managed.

People were supported to live full and active lives, taking part in clubs and meaningful activities aligned with their individual hobbies, interests and wishes.

People were offered a choice of meals which met their nutritional requirements and received appropriate support from staff with eating and drinking.

The quality assurance system in place to monitor the service provided to people was robust and capable of identifying areas for improvement. People made positive comments about the registered manager.

The service worked well with other organisations to ensure people had joined up care. People were supported to have input from external healthcare professionals in a timely way.

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):

At the last inspection the service was rated Good (Report published 9 June 2017).

Why we inspected:

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

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.