The Grove -4

Updated 27 January 2022

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of CQC’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic we are looking at how services manage infection control and visiting arrangements. This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection prevention and control measures the provider had in place. We also asked the provider about any staffing pressures the service was experiencing and whether this was having an impact on the service.

This inspection took place on 13 January 2022 and was announced. We gave the service 24 hours notice of the inspection.

Updated 27 January 2022

About the service

The Grove-4 is a residential care home providing personal care to 7 adults living with a learning disability or autism at the time of the inspection. People had their own bedrooms and shared communal areas such as the kitchen, bathrooms and the garden.

The service had not 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.

The service was part of a larger cluster of three services which were all located on the same site. The size of the service had some negative impact on people living there due to the service being located far away from local amenities and having limited access to public transport. The service was clearly a care home and there were identifying signs such as a large sign and industrial waste bins.

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

People were not always empowered to achieve good outcomes. The registered manager and provider were not fully aware of current best practice and guidance about supporting people living with a learning disability. Staff members were not promoting people to take full control of their lives in all areas and this was not being monitored by the provider. There were missed opportunities for continuous learning and improving care at the service due to this lack of monitoring.

There were enough staff to support people safely. Staff received appropriate training, however this training was not always effective in practice and staff’s use of this training was not always being monitored. Staff members had a good understanding of person-centred care in theory but did not always apply this in practice. Staff were not always supported to identify areas where this practice could be improved.

Staff members had got to know people well as individuals and were caring in their approach. However, staff did not always promote people’s independence and enable them to develop life skills. People were not always supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff did not always support them to try new activities or take part in meaningful activities; the policies and systems in the service did not always support this practice.

The service rarely 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 did not fully reflect the principles and values of Registering the Right Support as people were not fully supported to take part in community and social activities. People were not always supported to maintain their independence and daily living skills.

People were kept safe at the service and policies and procedures were in place to safeguard people from abuse. People received effective support with their food, drink and health needs. The premises were adapted and suitable to meet people’s needs. People had access to a complaints procedure if they needed to use this. The provider completed a range of audits in areas such as health and safety to ensure that the quality of the service in these areas 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:

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 12 January 2019). The service remains rated requires improvement. This is the second time that the service has been rated as requires improvement.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvement. Please see all the sections of this full report.

Enforcement:

We have identified breaches in relation to good governance and leadership at this inspection.

Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

Follow up:

We will meet with the provider following this report being published to discuss how they will make changes to ensure they improve their rating to at least good. We will work with the local authority to monitor progress. We will return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.