Archived: Unicorn House

Updated 24 November 2017

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked 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 was an unannounced inspection and took place on 6 October 2017.

The inspection was carried out by an inspector, expert by experience and independent observer. An expert by experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of service.

During the visit, we spoke with nine people, four care staff, the registered manager and contacted six relatives, seven health care professionals and an advocate. There were 12 people living at the service.

Before the inspection, we asked the provider to complete a Provider Information Return (PIR). This is a form that asks the provider to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. Due to technical problems a PIR was not available and we took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report. We also considered notifications made to us by the provider, safeguarding alerts raised regarding people living at the home and information we held on our database about the service and provider.

During our visit we observed care and support, was shown around the home, checked records, policies and procedures and maintenance and quality assurance systems. We looked at three personal care and support plans for people and checked three staff files.

Updated 24 November 2017

This was an unannounced inspection that took place on 6 October 2017.

Unicorn House is a residential care home that offers accommodation and personal care and support for up to twelve adults with learning disabilities and associated mental health issues.

At the time of our inspection the home had a registered manager. 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 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

At the last inspection on 10 August 2015 the home met all the key questions and was rated good in each with an overall good rating.

Unicorn House was warm and welcoming with people freely coming and going as they pleased. Some people had limited speech and therefore relatives spoke on their behalf. We also based our findings on the observation of staff care practices and people's responses to them. People said and their body language demonstrated that they enjoyed how staff provided care and support for them and that they liked living at the home. During our visit people were engaged in a variety of activities at home and in the community. Staff supported them to choose their activities themselves, when they wished to do them and with whom. They were safe in the home and the local community. There was positive interaction between people and also with staff.

People were given information about any planned activities so that they could decide if they wanted to join in. Staff provided care and support in a friendly, professional and supportive way that was focussed on people as individuals. Staff said they knew people and their likes and dislikes well and this enabled them to provide the care and support that people needed. Staff were well trained, had appropriate skills and made themselves accessible to people. They said that they really enjoyed working at the home and received good training and support from the registered manager.

The home’s records were accessible, kept up to date and covered all relevant aspects of the care and support that people received. This included the choices people made, activities they attended and way their safety was protected. People’s care plans were completed and the information contained was regularly reviewed. This meant staff were able to perform their duties competently and efficiently. People were encouraged and supported by staff to address their health needs and had access to GP’s and other community based health professionals. People were supported to be healthy by choosing nutritious, balanced meals that promoted a healthy diet whilst taking into account their likes, dislikes and preferences. The body language of people with communication difficulties and their smiles showed that they liked the choice and quality of their meals.

Relatives said the registered manager and staff were very approachable, responsive to requests made or concerns raised and frequently encouraged feedback and acted upon it. The registered manager consistently monitored and assessed the quality of the service and encouraged staff to put forward ideas that may improve the quality of peoples’ lives.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible with the policies and systems at the home supporting this practice.

The health care professionals that responded to our questions were happy with the support that the home provided for people.