Mill House

Updated 29 September 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 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 comprehensive inspection took place on 13 August 2018 and was unannounced. The inspection was carried out by two inspectors.

Before the inspection we reviewed the information we held about the service including statutory notifications sent to us by the registered manager about incidents and events. Statutory notifications include information about important events which the provider is required to send to us by law. We used this information to plan the inspection.

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.

During the inspection we spoke with four people who used the service. We also spoke with the area service manager, registered manager and four other members of staff. We also spoke with one relative and a professional supporting people at the service.

We looked at four peoples support records. We reviewed three staff records including recruitment. We also reviewed the staffing rota, training records and quality assurance records.

Updated 29 September 2018

Mill House is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as 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 provides care and support but not nursing care to people with mental health needs in their own rooms within a communal building. At the time of our inspection 20 people were receiving a service.

At the last inspection of 13 September 2015, the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of good and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

People continued to be safe at the service because staff had received training and were aware of procedures to safeguard people from abuse and manage risks to their health. Each person had a care plan and staff were aware of people’s individual needs. There were enough suitably knowledgeable staff to support people that had been recruited safely. People received their medicines as prescribed.

Staff received training and supervision to enable them to provide the support to people with regard to their assessed needs. People gave consent to the support they received. People were given support to manage their nutrition and accessed healthcare services when required.

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 support this practice.

The staff were empathic and treated people with understanding. People’s privacy and dignity were respected. Staff encouraged people to maintain and develop their independent living skills.

People continued to receive support that met their individual needs and preferences. Each person had an assessment of their needs and care plan which was updated regularly. Staff encouraged people to pursue their hobbies and interests. People knew how to raise a complaint and were confident any concerns raised would be addressed and resolved.

An open and positive culture was maintained by the service. The registered manager led and supported the staff team to focus upon person-centred support. Quality checks and audits remained in place so that issues were identified and resolutions for improvements put in place.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.