Lancaster House

Updated 19 July 2019

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.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by two inspectors.

Service and service type

Lancaster House is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as 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.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections.

We reviewed all the information we held about the service, including the previous inspection report and notifications of incidents the service is required to tell us about. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with four people who used the service about their experience of the service. We also spoke with the chefs, four care staff (including one senior member of the care staff team and one agency member of staff) and the registered manager.

We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us easily.

We reviewed a range of records. These included four people’s care records and five medicines records. We also reviewed rotas, two staff training and recruitment records and other documents relating to the safety and quality of the service.

Updated 19 July 2019

About the service

Lancaster House is a residential care home and was providing accommodation and personal care to 28 people at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to 31 adults.

Lancaster House accommodates people in a large adapted building. One part of the service was self-contained and accommodated people who were living with dementia or an enduring mental health condition. There were pleasant and secure garden areas for people tom enjoy.

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

People who used the service were very happy with the care and support provided and received a good quality of care.

Medicines were mostly very well managed and clearly recorded, although we found one stocktaking error. Staff understanding of safeguarding was good and they knew their responsibilities. There were enough staff and they were recruited safely. Risks were well managed and regular health and safety checks were in place.

The environment was suitable for people’s needs. Staff were well trained and induction and support for new staff was good. People’s needs related to their mental and physical health were well managed and there was good liaison with other professionals. People enjoyed their food and kitchen staff were clear about people’s dietary needs. Consent was well managed, and the registered manager acted as a good advocate to make sure people’s rights were upheld.

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.

Staff were kind and caring towards the people who used the service and their relatives. They promoted people’s independence and upheld their dignity. People who used the service were included in decisions about their care and played an active role in their local community if they wished to.

Care was person centred. The service enabled people to follow their own hobbies and interests. People living with dementia had opportunities to take part in sensory and imaginative activities. End of life care was well managed, and staff had received training to enhance their skills in this area. There was a complaints procedure in place and complaints had been responded to promptly and fully.

There was strong leadership from the registered manager. They had also begun to delegate some tasks to key staff and develop their skills. There was very good oversight of health, safety and welfare and action was taken if patterns or trends were identified.

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 requires improvement (published 13 June 2018).

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.