The Heathlands Village

Updated 10 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.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

Two inspectors visited Heathlands on the first two days of the inspection. One inspector visited on the third day. Two Expert by Experience’s supported the inspection on the first day. 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

Heathlands 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. Heathlands is a care home with 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 inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. 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 used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 18 people who used the service and 5 relatives about their experience of the care provided at Heathlands. We spoke with 24 members of staff including the registered manager, nominated individual, clinical managers, nurses, team leaders, shift leaders, care support workers and housekeepers. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider. We also spoke with one visiting medical professional and a volunteer who was a board member of the provider and a member of the quality assurance committee.

We reviewed a range of records, including 21 people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including quality assurance and incident reports.

We observed the support provided throughout our inspection and viewed the environment of the home. We used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

Updated 10 February 2023

About the service

The Heathlands Village (known as Heathlands) is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to up to 214 people. The service provides support to older people from both the Jewish and Non–Jewish community, some of whom were living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 137 people using the service.

Heathlands is divided into 7 units. Wolfson (nursing), Hamburger House (residential), Cedarwood (residential), Willow (residential), the Simon Jenkins unit (discharge to assess), Beach House (residential dementia), and Oakwood (nursing dementia).

People all have their own en-suite rooms. Each unit has a shared lounge, dining area and bathrooms. Heathlands also has extensive grounds, and the site includes an onsite synagogue, restaurant and atrium where people can meet their family and friends, as well as other facilities.

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

Assessments regarding people’s capacity to make their own decisions were not completed. Applications for a Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards were made when people moved to the home where applicable. This meant people were not always supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives. We have made a recommendation for formal capacity assessments to be completed and regularly reviewed.

From our observations, and feedback from people and relatives, staff supported people in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

People said they were safe living at Heathlands. Brief risk assessments were in place and care staff knew people’s needs well. People received their medicines as prescribed. Guidance for when people needed an ‘as required’ medicine to be administered was not sufficiently detailed. The registered manager said they would ensure additional details were recorded across all units.

There were enough staff to meet people’s needs. Staff were safely recruited. Incidents and accidents were recorded and reviewed to ensure actions had been taken to reduce the risk of a reoccurrence. The home was clean throughout.

There was a quality assurance system in place. This was in the process of being improved. Additional clinical managers had been recruited who in future would complete regular audits, giving the team and shift leaders more time to manage their units. The clinical managers were now more visible on the units and able to provide more support for the staff teams.

Feedback from people and relatives was positive about the care and support they received. There was good communication with relatives. A medical professional was also positive about the home, with staff knowing people’s needs and following any guidance provided.

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 7 March 2019).

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to an increase in notifications made by the home and the length of time since the last inspection. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe and well-led only. For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm. Please see the safe and well led sections of this full report.

The overall rating for the service has remained good based on the findings of this inspection.

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.

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

Recommendations

We have made a recommendation for the service to follow best practice guidance for assessing and reviewing people’s capacity to make decisions.

Follow up

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