Archived: Casarita

Updated 21 September 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 two inspectors.

Service and service type

Casarita 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. At the time of this inspection the registered manager was absent from the service and management support was being provided by a sister home.

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. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with five people who used the service and two relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with five members of staff including the supporting manager, supporting deputy manager and care workers.

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

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records.

Updated 21 September 2021

About the service

Casarita is a care home without nursing. It supports up to seven people with a learning disability or autism. At the time of the inspection there were seven people living at the service. The service comprises of two annexes which are self-contained flats; a further two flats with ensuite bathroom facilities and three bedrooms in the main building, a communal shower room, kitchen and lounge area. Outside there is a separate laundry room, a staff sleep in room and managers office. In addition, a grassed area is at the front and rear of the property with a small courtyard area located at the side entrance to the home.

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

People’s care and support was not always provided in a clean environment. This was addressed by the supporting manager following the inspection who reviewed processes in place.

There was not evidence of effective systems in place to support provider governance and oversight to drive change and sustain improvement.

People and relatives spoke positively about the service and provided feedback which included., “I am happy with the service and where [relative] is. My mind is settled knowing [relative] is happy and safe.” Another relative told us, “We are pleased with the staff and care and are thrilled with the service.”

Relatives told us they found the staff team to be polite and professional. Staff undertook a robust induction process and were confident in their role. The staff skills and knowledge was checked by the registered manager to ensure they were safe in their practice.

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. Right Support, right care, right culture is the statutory guidance which supports CQC to make assessments and judgements about services providing support to people with a learning disability and/or autistic people.

Based on our review of safe and well led, the service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of Right support, right care, right culture. The service provided a small homely environment for people to live. Staff were skilled and knowledgeable of people’s needs and provided care that was person centred.

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 good (published 03 August 2018).

Why we inspected

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.

We received concerns about the provider’s governance systems and oversight of the service. As a result, we undertook a focussed inspection to review the key questions of safe and well-led only.

We reviewed the information we held about the service. No areas of concern were identified in the other key questions. We therefore did not inspect them. Ratings from previous comprehensive inspections for those key questions were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.

The overall rating for the service has changed from good to requires improvement. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

We have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements. Please see the safe and well-led sections of this full report.

You can see what action we have asked the provider to take at the end of this full report.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Casarita on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Enforcement

We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to discharge our regulatory enforcement functions required to keep people safe and to hold providers to account where it is necessary for us to do so.

We have identified breaches in relation to the providers quality and assurance systems at this inspection.

Follow up

We will request an action plan for the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and 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.