Elstree Court Care Home

Updated 16 February 2023

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

Elstree Court is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Elstree Court Care Home is a care home with nursing care. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with CQC to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed the information we held about the service and the service provider. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We looked at the notifications and any safeguarding alerts we had received for this service. Notifications are information about important events the service is required to send us by law. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 10 people who used the service. We also spoke with 5 staff members in addition to the registered manager, and the senior area director. The senior area director has designated responsibilities for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We spent time observing people in areas throughout the service and could see the interaction between people and staff. We reviewed a range of records. This included people’s care records and evidence of activity and entertainment arranged. A variety of records relating to the management of the service were viewed, including complaint management, health and safety records and quality audits. We contacted and received feedback from 3 visiting professionals and spoke with 6 visiting relatives.

Updated 16 February 2023

About the service

Elstree Court Care Home accommodates up to 41 people in an extended and adapted building. It

provides accommodation and facilities over 3 floors and most areas have level access with chair lifts available in areas where steps are located. At the time of inspection there was 38 people living in the service. People’s needs were varied and included nursing needs, and support with dementia and memory loss.

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

People received individual time with staff to engage in activity and entertainment that met their individual needs. Activity staff were keen to promote well-being for people and ensured regular social interaction.

Complaints were recorded and responded to effectively. People were given information on how to make a complaint and said they were comfortable to raise a concern or complaint if need be. People's communication needs were assessed and responded to. End of life care was planned and involved additional health care professionals when needed.

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.

There was a stable management structure and staff felt well supported and valued. There was a positive culture and team spirit amongst the staff. Feedback from staff, relatives and visiting professionals was positive about the leadership of the service.

The registered manager was committed to maintaining and developing a quality service.

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 12 June 2018).

Why we inspected

This inspection was prompted by a review of the information we held about this service

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the Safe key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.