The Bungalow

Updated 11 March 2020

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

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

The Inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed the information we held about the service. This included the statutory notifications that had been submitted since the last inspection. Notifications are changes, events and incidents that the service must inform us about.

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 used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We met with the four people who lived at the service and spoke with four staff, including the registered manager and three care staff.

We reviewed a range of records. This included two people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We telephoned three representatives of people to gain an understanding of their views about people’s lives at The Bungalow. We also received feedback from staff at Surrey County Council who had experience of working with the service.

Updated 11 March 2020

About the service

The Bungalow is a residential care home providing personal care to 4four people with learning and physical disabilities at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to five people.

The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.

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

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 were systems in place to safeguard people from the risk of abuse and staff understood their role in protecting people from harm. There was some concern that minimum staffing levels had not always been maintained over few weeks prior to the inspection, however there was evidence of ongoing recruitment at the service and the provider was taking appropriate action to manage the situation. Managers and staff demonstrated reflective practice in order to improve care.

People’s needs were appropriately assessed in order to develop an effective plan of care.

Staff received ongoing training and support to ensure they had the skills to meet people’s specialist needs. Staff worked effectively together as a team and with other professionals. Communication was good across the service.

There was meaningful engagement between staff and people. People enjoyed positive relationships with the staff that supported them and were actively included in all aspects of their care. Where able, people made their own decisions about their daily routines. Staff consistently promoted privacy and ensured their dignity was upheld.

People received a personalised approach to care. Support was responsive to individual needs and people had opportunities to spend their time doing things they enjoyed including regular access to their local community and other places of interest. People were encouraged and supported to share their views about the service and concerns were listened to and acted upon.

People spoke positively about the registered manager and had confidence in how the service was being run. There were effective systems in place to continually monitor and drive improvements. Action was taken to effectively engage with a range of stakeholders and ensure their views were included in the ongoing development of the service.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection (and update)

The last rating for this service was Good (published 5 October 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.