Greyfriars Lodge Extra Care Housing

Updated 8 December 2018

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 13 October 2018 and was announced. We gave the service 48 hours' notice of the inspection visit. This is because the manager and staff are often out of the office supporting people and we needed to be sure that they would be in.

Inspection site visit activity started on 13 November 2018 and ended on 19 November 2018. It included a visit to the office, visits to people's homes and telephone calls. We visited the office location on 13 November to see the manager and staff and to review care records and policies and procedures. At the time of our inspection there were eight people who used the service.

This inspection was carried out by one inspector. Before our inspection, we reviewed the information held about the service. This included information we received from statutory notifications since the last inspection. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send us by law. We contacted agencies such as the local authority safeguarding and commissioners. Commissioners are people who work to find appropriate care and support services for people and might fund the care provided.

We used information the provider sent us in the Provider Information Return. This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection we spoke with three people in their homes, one person who received support when they need immediate assistance and one relative. We spoke with the manager, a team leader, three staff members and the scheme manager who is employed by the housing association responsible for tenant affairs and maintenance of the premises. We also spoke with one health and social care professional for their feedback on their experiences of the care provided.

Updated 8 December 2018

This inspection took place between 13 and 19 November 2018. This was the first inspection of the service since it was registered on December 2017. Greyfriars Lodge Extra Care Housing is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats to predominantly older people.

This service provides care and support to people living in specialist 'extra care' housing. Extra care housing is purpose-built or adapted single household accommodation in a shared site or building. The accommodation is rented or bought, and is the occupant's own home. People's care and housing are provided under Greyfriars Lodge Extra Care Housing. The scheme has a restaurant, hairdressing salon, communal areas, garden and a guest room.

Not everyone using the service receives regulated activity; CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with 'personal care'; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided.

A registered manager was not in post. There was a manager in post whose application to register with CQC has been accepted and is being processed. Their application to become registered with CQC had been accepted. 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 service is run.

Where services support people with learning disabilities or autism we expect them to be developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the 'Registering the Right Support' and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any other citizen. There were no people with a learning disability or autism using the service when we inspected. Therefore, we were unable to assess and monitor if the service was following this guidance.

People told us they felt the service was safe. Staff had a good understanding of their responsibility about safeguarding adults. Risk assessments were in place which provided guidance on how to support people safely. We have made a recommendation that the provider source and use evidence based assessment tools to understand risk and to implement control measures. Medicines were managed safely. Staff had received training and were observed to ensure they administered medicines safely.

Staff had been recruited safely with appropriate checks on their backgrounds completed. Staff undertook training and received regular supervision to help support them to provide effective care.

People were supported to make choices in relation to their food and drink and to maintain good health.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Staff understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) and gained consent before offering support.

The care provided was person-centred and we observed positive interactions between people and staff. Staff treated people with dignity and respect and promoted their independence. They knew people well and could anticipate their needs. People told us they were happy and felt well cared for.

Person-centred support plans were in place and people and their relatives were involved in planning the care and support they received. People's cultural and religious needs were respected when planning and delivering care and staff protected people from discrimination.

The provider had a complaint procedure in place and people and their relatives knew how to make a complaint. People were asked for their views on the support provided. The manager and provider monitored the quality of service to ensure that people received a safe and effective service which met their needs.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.