Strafford House

Updated 15 February 2022

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

As part of CQC’s response to care homes with outbreaks of COVID-19, we are conducting reviews to ensure that the Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) practice is safe and that services are compliant with IPC measures. This was a targeted inspection looking at the IPC practices the provider has in place. We also asked the provider about any staffing pressures the service was experiencing and whether this was having an impact on the service.

This inspection took place on 31 January 2022 and was announced. We gave the service 24 hour's notice of the inspection.

Updated 15 February 2022

This comprehensive inspection took place on 5 July 2018 and was unannounced.

Strafford 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 can accommodate up to six people in one house.

The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen. Registering the Right Support CQC policy.

At the last comprehensive inspection in September 2015, the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

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

The service had a registered manager in post at the time of our inspection. 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 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run.

People continued to feel safe. People we spoke with all said they felt safe. Staff understood their roles and responsibilities to safeguard people from the risk of harm. Staff had been safely recruited and there were enough staff to meet people's needs.

Detailed risk management plans were in place to guide staff on the action to take to mitigate the identified risks.

People continued to receive their medicines in a safe manner and received good healthcare support. People received a nutritious and balanced diet and their dietary needs and choices were met.

The service was well maintained and clean. Infection control was adhered to by staff.

People were supported to make their own decisions and choices within any restrictions that were in place.

People were encouraged to eat a healthy diet. People chose what they wanted to eat and were involved in menu plans and involved in shopping and preparation of food.

There were good systems in place to monitor incidents and accidents. There were arrangements in place for the service to make sure that action was taken and lessons learned when things went wrong, to improve safety across the service.

People spoke positively about the relationships they had with the staff team. The atmosphere was relaxed, calm and friendly.

People were involved in developing their care plans, which were person-centred and kept under review. Staff respected people’s privacy and dignity and promoted their independence. There was a strong person centred and caring culture in the home. (Person centred means that care is tailored to meet the needs and aspirations of each person, as an individual.) The vision of the service was shared by the management team and staff.

There was a varied and appropriate activity programme and people had regular access to the community.The service had an open and inclusive culture which encouraged communication and learning.

People, relatives and staff were encouraged to provide feedback about the service and it was used to drive improvement.There were policies in place that ensured people would be listened to and treated fairly if they complained about the service.

We saw that the registered provider and registered manager continued to effectively monitor and audit the quality and safety of the service and that people who used the service and their relatives were involved in the development of the home and were able to contribute ideas.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.