Knells Country House

Knells Country House is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care for up to 24 people. The service provides support to older people, some of whom are living with dementia-related conditions. At the time of our inspection there were 18 people using the service.

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

People and relatives had many positive comments about the caring, welcoming and warm atmosphere in the home. Relatives said the service provided individual and fulfilling lifestyles for people.

People and relatives said it was a safe place to live. Risks to people were now assessed and managed in a safe way. There had been improvements to the way medicines were managed.

There were enough staff to support people. New staff were appropriately vetted before they started to work at the home.

Since the last inspection a new manager had been appointed. They were putting training and development plans in place for each staff member. Relatives commented on how knowledgeable staff were in supporting people.

People were supported with their individual dietary needs and preferences. They described the meals as “very good”. The staff team also supported people to access health care services when necessary.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff assisted them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service upheld this practice.

People, relatives and staff had confidence in the management of the home. The manager carried out audits to ensure the safe running of the service. Areas for improvement were set out in a development plan.

The provider was committed to continuing improvements at the home including a refurbishment plan with input from people, relatives and staff members.

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 requires improvement (published 9 November 2022). 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.

Why we inspected

We carried out an unannounced comprehensive inspection of this service on 13 September 2022. A breach of legal requirements was found. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve good governance.

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, Effective 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 requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this 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.

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

Follow up

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

Knells Country House is a residential care home providing personal care for up to 24 people. The service provides support to older people, some of whom have dementia-related conditions. At the time of our inspection there were 21 people using the service.

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

The provider’s systems for checking the quality of the service were not always followed. This meant records about risk, training and care were not up to date and improvements were not always put in place.

People and relatives complimented the warm, friendly atmosphere in the home and described staff as kind and caring. The home had a welcoming culture. Staff were engaging with people and knew their needs well.

People received individualised support which matched their personal preferences. There was a range of activities and engagement in the local community to support people’s social inclusion.

People said the meals were nice and they got enough to eat and drink. People had good input from other care services to support their health needs. Staff provided sensitive care to people when they reached the end stages of their lives.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff assisted them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service upheld this practice.

The home was clean and comfortable. The provider had sufficient equipment and screening to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

Relatives said staff had kept them well-informed throughout the pandemic and they praised the new manager and provider for their open and approachable attitude.

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

Rating at last inspection

This service was registered with us on 10 October 2020 and this is the first inspection.

The last rating for the service under the previous provider was good, published on 14 June 2019.

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection.

Enforcement and Recommendations

We are mindful of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our regulatory function. This meant we took account of the exceptional circumstances arising as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic when considering what enforcement action was necessary and proportionate to keep people safe as a result of this inspection. We will continue to monitor the service and will take further action if needed.

We have identified a breach of regulation relating to the governance of the service.

Please see the action we have told the provider to take at the end of this report.

Follow up

We will request an action plan from the provider to understand what they will do to improve the standards of quality and safety. We will work alongside the provider and local authority to monitor progress. We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.