Background to this inspection
Updated
8 January 2020
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. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.
Inspection team
The inspection team consisted of one inspector and one 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
This service provides care and support to people living in specialist ‘extra care’ housing. People using the service are older people, some with dementia, or mental health support needs.
The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.
Notice of inspection
We gave the service 48 hours' notice of the inspection visit because it is a specialist ‘extra care’ housing service staff members are often out of the office providing care. We needed to be sure that they would be available to speak with us. We also needed to ensure that people's consent was gained for us to contact them for feedback about the service.
What we did
We reviewed the records held on the service. This included the Provider Information Return (PIR). Providers are required to send us key information about the service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. The information helps support our inspections. We also reviewed notifications received from the provider about incidents or accidents which they are required to send us by law. We sought feedback from the local authority and other professionals who work with the service. We used all this information to plan our inspection.
During the inspection
We visited the service on 09 December 2019. We spoke to the registered manager, operations manager, support team manager, two care staff and two people receiving support from the service. An Expert by Experience made telephone calls to six people receiving support from the service and three relatives. We looked at three people's care records to see how their care was planned and delivered. Other records we looked at included two staff recruitment files, supervision files, training records, accidents and incidents, records relating to health and safety, safeguarding, complaints, medicine records, staff scheduling and the provider’s audits and checks on the service.
Updated
8 January 2020
About the service: Walker Grange is registered to provide personal care to people living in specialist 'extra care' housing. Extra care housing is purpose-built or adapted single household accommodation in a shared site or building. Walker Grange provides accommodation that is rented and is the occupant's own home. People's care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for extra care housing; this inspection only looked at people's personal care service.
At Walker Grange there are 39 one-bedroom flats. There is a communal lounge and a communal kitchen on ground floor that people can use if they wish. Other communal facilities include a lift to each floor, laundry and garden.
At the time of this inspection, there were 22 people living at Walker Grange who were supported with personal care.
People’s experience of using this service:
We found a range of quality monitoring arrangements in place, and we saw these were developing and becoming more effective.
People were supported by staff that were caring, compassionate and treated people with dignity and respect. Any concerns or worries were listened and responded to and used as opportunities to improve.
People received person centred care and support based on their individual needs and preferences. Staff were aware of people's life histories and individual preferences. They used this information to develop positive, meaningful relationships with people.
People and their relatives told us they felt cared for by staff who treated them with respect and dignity and encouraged them to maintain relationships and keep their independence for as long as possible.
The provider ensured people had consistency with staff members, as a result people and staff were able to build positive relationships. People were supported by staff who had the skills and knowledge to meet their needs. Staff understood and felt confident in their role.
Staff liaised with other health care professionals to ensure people's safety and meet their health needs.
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 spoke positively about working for the provider. They felt well supported and they could talk to management at any time, feeling confident any concerns would be acted on promptly. Staff felt valued and happy in their role.
Audits were completed by staff and the registered manager to check the quality and safety of the service.
The registered manager and team support manager worked well to lead the staff team in their roles and ensure people received a good service.
More information is in Detailed Findings below
Rating at last inspection: The service was given an overall rating of good.
Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.
Follow up: We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If any concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.
For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk