We undertook an announced inspection of Care and Support Services - Cote Lane on 3 and 5 October 2017. When the service was last inspected in June 2015, there were no breaches.Care and Support Service - Cote Lane provides personal care to people living within private accommodation within the provider’s Cote Lane retirement community site. All people who receive personal care from this service live within privately owned or privately rented apartments. All of the people at the service have 24-hour access to staff in the event of an emergency. Calls can range from 15 minutes to six calls a day.
At the time of the inspection, there were a total of 186 people living within the 179 apartments and the registered manager was responsible for the wellbeing of all of these people. Their role was called a retirement community manager. They were supported by the care and support team, a chaplain and the community engagement co-ordinator and a group of volunteers. The volunteers assisted people during coffee mornings and various social events.
People who live within the retirement community have access to facilities such as a theatre/cinema, a chapel, swimming pool, gym, physiotherapy suite, a small shop and hairdressing salon as well as two restaurants. At the time of our inspection, the service was providing personal care to 48 of the 186 people.
The registered manager had resigned the week prior to the inspection. A new manager had commenced in post and was in the process of registering with us. They were available on both days of 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 home is run.
At the last inspection, the service was rated Good. At this inspection, we found the service remained Good.
Why the service is rated good:
Staff had a good understanding of safeguarding and knew what to do if they were concerned about the welfare of people or an allegation of abuse had been made. Any safeguarding concerns were investigated with the outcomes fed back and practices changed if necessary in order to prevent reoccurrences. People had risk assessments to keep them safe whilst receiving personal care. This included environmental risk assessments. People told us they felt safe whilst being supported by staff. Staff were recruited in a safe and consistent manner.
Medicines were managed safely with people receiving their medicines appropriately. Regular medicine audits were being carried out. Where errors had taken place, appropriate action had been taken to protect people, including additional training and observations of staff practice. Improvements were being made to ensure the records included more details about the medicines held in people’s dossette boxes.
There was sufficient staff to meet people’s individual needs. People told us staff turned up on time and stayed for the full duration of the visit. Staffing was planned flexibly to meet people’s individual needs. Staffing was in place 24 hours in the event of an emergency or a person requiring support at night. At the time of the inspection, no one was receiving planned care at night.
People had access to a range of health professionals when required. Some people looked after their own health care appointments. People’s nutritional needs were being met.
People had their needs assessed and clear plans of care were in place about how the person wanted to be supported. These were personalised and up to date. People were very much involved in their care. There was an emphasis on encouraging people to be independent as possible enabling them to live independently in their own apartments. People felt confident that their care needs would be met and gave very positive feedback about the staff that supported them. It was evident that the service was very responsive to people’s changing needs and adjustments made to the care and support to enable them to continue to live the life they wanted.
The service was very responsive and people were supported to achieve their aspirations and follow their chosen hobbies and interests to ensure they maintained positive physical and mental wellbeing. People were very much involved in life at Cote Lane and making decisions about their care. Regular meetings were held with people so they could air their views and make suggestions for improvement in relation to care delivery and life at Cote Lane.
Staff were consistently caring and supportive and demonstrated a good understanding of their roles in supporting people. Staff received training and support that was relevant to their roles and the people they supported. Staff were passionate about delivering care that was tailored to the person.
People were provided with a safe, effective, caring and responsive service that was well led. The registered provider was aware of the importance of reviewing the quality of the service and was aware of the improvements that were needed to enhance the service.
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