Archived: Eldermere

Updated 15 May 2015

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, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 20 and 26 March 2015 and was unannounced. It was carried out by one inspector.

People had communication and language difficulties associated with their learning difficulty. Because of this we were only able to have very limited conversations with two people about their experiences. We therefore used our observations of care and our discussions with people’s relatives and staff to help form our judgements.

We spoke with three relatives on the telephone. We spoke with five care staff and the registered manager during our visits to the home. 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. We observed care and support in communal areas and looked at three people’s care records. We also looked at records that related to how the home was managed.

Before our inspection we reviewed information we held about the home, including the provider’s action plan sent to us following the last inspection. We also reviewed the Provider Information Return (PIR) and previous inspection reports. The PIR is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and the improvements they plan to make.

Updated 15 May 2015

Eldermere provides care and support for six people who have a mild to moderate learning disability. People require 24 hour staff support in the home and support to go out. Eldermere is set in its own grounds, close to the town centre.

This inspection took place on 20 and 26 March 2015 and was unannounced. It was carried out by one inspector.

People had communication difficulties associated with their learning difficulty. Because of this we were only able to have very limited conversations with two people about their experiences. We therefore used our observations of care and our discussions with people’s relatives and staff to help form our judgements.

We carried out our last inspection of Eldermere in August 2014. Following this inspection we asked the provider to make improvements to the home’s quality assurance system as it had failed to identify potential risks to people's health and welfare. The provider sent us an action plan to tell us the improvements they were going to make, which they would complete by 22 September 2014. During this inspection we looked to see if these improvements had been made and found they had.

The home was a safe place for people. They were able to take appropriate risks as part of their day to day lives. Staff understood people’s needs and provided the care and support they needed.

The service supported people to have as much control over their own lives as they could. People used many community facilities and were encouraged to be as independent as they could be. People appeared happy with the care they received. One relative said “Staff are very helpful, pleasant and very kind. We are very happy with the care.”

Staffing levels were good and people also received good support from health and social care professionals. Staff were skilled at communicating with people, especially if people were unable to communicate verbally.

People, and those close to them, were involved in planning and reviewing their care and support. There was a close relationship and good communication with people’s relatives.

There had been many improvements to the service. The environment had been significantly improved and adapted to meet people’s needs. Relatives and staff all specifically commented on how the home had been “opened up.” One staff member said “I think the care is excellent here. I’ve worked here a long time and this is the best it’s ever been.”

Staff had good knowledge of people including their needs and preferences. Communication and morale throughout the staff team was good. Staff were well supported and well trained. All staff spoken with said the training and ongoing support they received was very good.

There was a management structure in the home which provided clear lines of responsibility and accountability. The management team were passionate about trying to provide the best level of care possible to people. Relatives and staff spoke very highly of the registered manager and the positive effect they had on the service. Staff had adopted the manager’s ethos and this showed in the way they supported people.

There were effective quality assurance processes in place to monitor care and plan ongoing improvements. There were systems in place to share information and seek people’s views about the running of the home. One person’s relative said “We always chat with the staff so we know what’s been going on.”