Clarendon Court Care Home

Updated 29 April 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

This inspection was completed by 2 inspectors and an 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

Clarendon Court 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. Clarendon Court is a care home without 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 not a registered manager in post. A new manager had been in post for 6 months and had submitted an application to register. We are currently assessing this application.’

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced. We visited the service on 4 April 2023.

What we did before the inspection

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 sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We contacted Healthwatch for information they held about the service. Healthwatch is an independent consumer champion that gathers and represents the views of the public about health and social care services in England. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We observed staff interaction with people during the site visit. We spoke with 10 people who used the service and 3 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 12 members of staff including the provider, the manager, senior care staff, care staff, maintenance staff, housekeeping staff and the cook.

We reviewed a range of records. This included 5 people's care records and multiple medication records. We looked at 4 staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. This included but was not limited to the provider's current staffing information, training data, policies and procedures and meeting records, audits and checks.

Updated 29 April 2023

About the service

Clarendon Court Care Home is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care for up to 42 people, including people living with dementia. At the time of the inspection 29 people were living at the service, with 3 people currently inpatients at hospital. The service is in a residential area of Nottingham city, in one building set out over 4 floors. The ground floor has a communal dining area and lounges.

CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided.

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

Clarendon Court was well led by a manager who showed strong leadership qualities. The staff team were skilled, competent and kind. They understood people and their identified needs well.

Risks associated with people's care and support and the environment were safely managed. People were protected from the risk of harm. Opportunities to learn from incidents were shared across the staff team to ensure improvements in service delivery were made.

Medicines were received, stored, administered and disposed of safely by staff trained and competent in this area. The home was clean and hygienic. The manager was following best practice guidance in infection control standards.

There were sufficient staff deployed across the service to meet people's needs and ensure their safety. Safe recruitment practices were followed, and staff were trained and competent to carry out their roles.

People were supported with their health needs and had access to external services. Care plans contained personalised health information. The service was well adapted and being refurbished to meet people's needs.

The provider and manager operated effective governance systems to ensure the quality, safety and improvement of people's care when needed. Audit systems were robust, and there were opportunities for people, relatives and staff to get involved in service improvements.

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.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was Inadequate (published 28 December 2022.) and there were breaches of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

This service has been in Special Measures since 28 December 2022. During this inspection the provider demonstrated that improvements have been made. The service is no longer rated as inadequate overall or in any of the key questions. Therefore, this service is no longer in Special Measures.

Why we inspected

This inspection was carried out to follow up on action we told the provider to take at the last 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.

We carried out an unannounced inspection of this service on 20 and 21 July 2022. Breaches of legal requirements were found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve safe care and treatment, safeguarding service users from abuse and improper treatment, good governance and oversight and ensuring the employment of fit and proper persons.

We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe and Well-led which contain those requirements.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has changed from Inadequate to Good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Clarendon Court Care Home on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

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