The inspection of Trees Residential Care Home took place on 8 September 2015 and was unannounced. The service had previously been inspected in August 2013 and was found to be fully compliant at that time.
Trees Residential Care Home provides residential care for 22 older people. There were 19 people living in the home on the day of our inspection, of whom two were on respite. Everyone has a single room. The home is situated in a residential area close to the centre of Pontefract and all local amenities and facilities. There is a car parking area to the front and lawn areas to the front and back of the building.
There was a registered manager in post although they were not there on the day of the inspection due to annual leave. We spoke with the deputy manager and the registered provider on the day and we spoke with the registered manager following the inspection. 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 we spoke with told us they felt safe and staff were able to identify what may constitute a safeguarding concern. Staff were able to explain various techniques they would use to try and avert such situations, if they arose between people living in the home and staff knew how to report more serious concerns. Staff we spoke with told us they had never had to raise any concerns about their colleagues.
We found risk assessments were based on individual need and regularly updated. Staff showed a good understanding of people’s specific requirements and knew what to do if there was an emergency.
Medicines were administered, recorded and stored in accordance with requirements and staff had received the necessary training to fulfil this role.
There were some areas of the environment which needed attention which we spoke with the registered provider about. These were immediately actioned or work chased up where it had not been completed.
We spoke with staff and saw records which showed they had received a comprehensive induction. They then had regular meetings with the registered manager to discuss their performance, understanding and any identified gaps in their knowledge. Staff were encouraged to contribute to these meetings and they told us they were a positive experience. This was reflected in the appraisals we found which acknowledged staff’s skills and experience.
People told us they enjoyed the food and we saw plenty of choice being offered to people throughout the day. We saw that people were encouraged to do as much for themselves as possible and staff offered assistance only where absolutely necessary. People’s nutritional intake was monitored and recorded as required.
We saw the service accessed additional health and social care resources, where needs arose, and people told us they received this quickly.
People we spoke with said staff were caring, considerate and kind and involved them in any decision-making about their how their care needs were to be met.
We saw the service was focused on meeting people’s needs, offering flexible support and based on people’s wishes. Care records were detailed and showed that the service was keen to ensure people had the opportunity to participate as much or as little as they wished in various activities within the home.
People and staff were keen to say how much they enjoyed being in the home and knew the registered manager and their deputy well. There was evidence of effective support for all staff reinforced by the robust quality assurance systems in place which were used effectively.