Archived: Signature at Elstree

Updated 10 August 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 2 inspectors and an Expert by experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

Signature at Elstree is a care home without nursing care. 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 the Care Quality Commission 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 information we had received about the service since the last inspection. The provider was not asked to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR) prior to this inspection. A PIR is information providers send us 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 reviewed a range of records related to 5 people’s care and support. This included people’s care plans, risk assessments, medicines records for 6 people and 3 staff files in relation to recruitment and training. We reviewed records related to the management of the service, which included training records, safeguarding incidents, complaints, quality assurance records and a range of policies and procedures. We spoke with the registered manager, deputy manager, activities coordinator, 3 care staff, head chef and 2 domestic staff. We spoke with 7 people and 2 relatives. We spent time observing the care people received. After the inspection we contacted 10 heath care professionals to seek feedback and we received a response from 7.

Updated 10 August 2023

About the service

Elstree View Care Home is a residential care home. The home can provide care for up to 81 people. At the time of our inspection there were 48 people living at the home. The care home was arranged over three floors. One of the floors specialises in providing care to people living with dementia and this unit is called the reminiscence floor.

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

People told us they were happy with the care they received. Overall risks to people were identified and managed. We did identify one area for improvement regarding supporting people on outings. We made a recommendation to the provider about this. Medicines were managed safely. The provider had good systems in place to safeguard people from the risk of abuse. Staff worked effectively within their infection control policy and were very proud of the high standards of cleanliness across the home.

People’s needs were assessed before they moved into the home. People were supported to eat healthy food and they were involved in the planning of the menus, which were seasonal. Staff supported people to attend their medical appointments and healthcare professionals hosted satellite surgeries at the home if required.

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 safely recruited in line with best practice and there were enough staff to care for people. Staff received a detailed induction and they had the necessary training to care for people.

The culture of the home was one that placed the needs of people first. Staff were individually caring, and respected people’s dignity and privacy and people were supported to stay independent.

Care plans reflected what was important to people. People's views were sought and recorded on their care and their future wishes. Care plans were reviewed regularly to ensure that they met people's needs. Communal spaces and activities were used to ensure a sense of community and protect people from the risk of isolation. The activities were chosen based on people’s hobbies and interests.

The registered manager completed regular checks and audits on the quality of the service and acted if they observed any shortfalls. There was effective communication between all departments in the home which meant staff felt they had the necessary support to carry out their roles.

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 Signature at Elstree Home under the previous provider at the same premises was good (published 09 January 2018).

Why we inspected

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

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Signature at Elstree on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

Recommendations

We made a recommendation to the provider to review how risk’s were assessed and planned for.

Follow up

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