St Winifred's Nursing Home

Updated 3 August 2021

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.

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

This inspection was carried out by an inspector, a medicines inspector and an Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

St Winifred’s is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or 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.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. 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.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was announced. We announced the inspection from the car park shortly before entering the service. This was because we needed to check the arrangements in place for preventing and containing transmission of COVID-19 prior to entering the building. Inspection activity started on 8 July 2021 and ended on 20 July 2021. We visited the service on 8 and 15 July 2021. The other dates were spent reviewing information off site.

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 commissioners and safeguarding team and Healthwatch. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England.

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

While on site we spent time with people in the communal areas observing the care and support provided by staff. We spoke with seven people who used the service about their experience of the care provided and two relatives. We spoke with six members of staff including the registered manager, clinical lead, nursing and care staff.

We reviewed a range of records. This included two people's care records and eight people’s medicine records. We looked at two staff recruitment files. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

Updated 3 August 2021

About the service

St Winifred’s is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care for up to 38 older people, some of who are living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 32 people using the service.

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

Improvements had been made since the last inspection which had resulted in better outcomes for people using the service. One person said, “I am lucky to be here. My [relative] found this place and I have not been disappointed. They look after you really well.”

People told us they received their medicines when they needed them and we found safe systems were in place. Staff understood how to manage any risks to people and knew the processes to follow to manage any allegations of abuse. There were enough staff to meet people’s needs and keep them safe. Staff were recruited safely and received the training they needed. Staff said they felt well supported in their roles.

The service was well run. People, relatives and staff praised the management of the service. Effective quality assurance systems were in place. The provider and registered manager were committed to making further improvements to the service with an ongoing action plan which included a refurbishment programme. The registered manager promoted good practice and worked alongside the staff supporting them and making sure the quality of care was maintained.

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 29 February 2020) and there were two 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 comprehensive inspection of this service on 27 and 30 January 2020. 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 and Well-led which contain those requirements.

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.

The ratings from the previous comprehensive inspection for those key questions not looked at on this occasion were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for St Winifred’s Nursing Home 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.