Ash Grove

Updated 21 July 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.

Inspection team

This inspection was carried out by 2 inspectors and 1 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

Ash Grove 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. 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

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection. This was because it is a small service and we needed to be sure that the provider or registered manager would be in the office to support the inspection.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We used the information the provider had 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 reviewed 5 people’s financial records, 5 people’s medication records and 4 people’s care plans. We reviewed staff recruitment documentation and looked at a variety of records relating to the management of the service, including audits, policies, and procedures. We spoke with 1 person using the service and 4 family members/carers about their experience of the service. Following our inspection, we contacted 8 members of staff and the local authority to obtain their opinion on the quality of the service provided to people.

Updated 21 July 2023

About the service

Ash Grove is a residential care home providing personal care to up to 6 people. The service provides support to younger people with a learning disability and autistic people. At the time of our inspection there were 8 people using the service. People were cared for in 1 adapted building with bedrooms over 2 floors.

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. ‘Right support, right care, right culture’ is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people and providers must have regard to it.

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

Right Support:

Staff supported people to be independent and have the maximum possible choice and control over their own lives. Staff provided people with care in the least restrictive way possible and in line with their best interests; the policies and systems in the service promoted this practice. The service worked with people to plan for when they experienced periods of distress so that their freedom was restricted only if there was no alternative. The service gave people care and support in a safe, clean, well equipped, well-furnished and well-maintained environment that met their sensory and physical needs. People had a choice about their living environment and were able to personalise their rooms. Staff supported people with their medicines in a way that promoted their independence and achieved the best possible health outcome.

Right Care:

People received kind and compassionate care. Staff protected and respected people’s privacy and dignity. They understood and responded to their individual needs. Staff understood how to protect people from poor care and abuse. The service worked well with other agencies to do so. Staff had received training on how to recognise and report abuse and they knew how to apply it. The service had enough appropriately skilled staff to meet people’s needs effectively and keep them safe. People were able to communicate with staff and understand information given to them because staff supported them consistently and understood their individual communication needs. People’s care, treatment and support plans reflected their range of needs and this promoted their wellbeing and enjoyment of life.

Right Culture:

Staff placed people’s wishes, needs and rights at the heart of everything they did. People and those important to them, including advocates, were involved in planning their care. People led inclusive and empowered lives because of the ethos, values, attitudes and behaviour of the management and staff.

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 16 October 2018).

Why we inspected

We received concerns in relation to the management of medicines and alleged financial and emotional abuse. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe, caring 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 from this concern. Please see the safe, caring and well-led sections of this full report.

Recommendations

We have made a recommendation about submitting statutory notifications.

Follow up

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