The Lawns Care Home

Updated 30 October 2020

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.

This was a targeted inspection looking at the infection control and prevention measures the provider has in place. As part of CQC’s response to the coronavirus pandemic we are conducting a thematic review of infection control and prevention measures in care homes.

This inspection took place on 20 October 2020 and was announced. The service was selected to take part in this thematic review which is seeking to identify examples of good practice in infection prevention and control.

Updated 30 October 2020

About the service

The Lawns Care Home is a residential care home providing personal care to 12 people over the age of 18 who have a diagnosis of a learning disability. At the time of the inspection 12 people were living at the service.

The service had been open for some years and therefore had not been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. However, the service 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 using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support by promoting choice and control and inclusion. People's support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible to make choices about their care and lifestyle.

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

People continued to receive exceptional care and lived in a nurturing environment where their individual needs, personalities and wishes were at the centre. One relative said, “The care is second to none and the staff go above and beyond. It’s an amazing place, there should be more services like them.”

The ethos of the service as being one big happy family who support each other during difficult times and celebrated with each other on happy occasions, was clearly evident.

Staff continued to demonstrate an exceptionally caring nature and a passion for providing high quality care which was visible throughout the service. Staff showed genuine interest and concern in people's lives and their health and wellbeing and empowered people to achieve their goals, dreams and aspirations. Staff frequently went above and beyond the required expectations, to support people to enjoy their individual interests and hobbies. Staff recognised equality and diversity and understood how to protect people’s human rights and lifestyle choices.

People were empowered to make life choices and decisions about the care they received. People told us they chose what they wanted to do, where they spent their time and with whom.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

Robust recruitment practices were in place to ensure the suitability of new staff. People were supported by a stable and consistent staff team who knew people well and, as such, had an excellent understanding of their needs and wishes.

People's needs were assessed, recorded and met. Each person had a care plan which gave staff guidance about how people preferred to be cared for.

People were encouraged and supported to take positive risks and be as independent as they could be. Staff and relatives told us staff always tried hard to promote people’s independence.

The provider worked with other health and social care professionals to make sure people received the care and treatment they required. This included meeting changing health care needs.

Robust quality assurance systems were in place to monitor the safety and quality of the service and improvement was driven by engagement with people, whose views were listened to and acted upon.

The Secretary of State has asked the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to conduct a thematic review and to make recommendations about the use of restrictive interventions in settings that provide care for people with or who might have mental health problems, learning disabilities and/or autism.

Thematic reviews look in-depth at specific issues concerning quality of care across the health and social care sectors. They expand our understanding of both good and poor practice and of the potential drivers of improvement.

As part of thematic review, we carried out a survey with the operations director at this inspection. This considered whether the service used any restrictive intervention practices (restraint, seclusion and segregation) when supporting people.

The service used positive behaviour support principles to support people in the least restrictive way. No restrictive intervention practices were used.

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 4 March 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

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.