Archived: Sandpiper Care Home

Updated 18 September 2019

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 Care Act 2014.

Inspection team

The inspection was completed by one inspector and one assistant inspector.

Service and service type

Sandpiper Care Home 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 did not have a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. The registered manager and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided. The new manager had worked alongside the previous registered manager and was being supported by the provider. The new manager had applied to register with CQC.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We looked at information sent to us since the last inspection such as notifications about accidents and safeguarding alerts. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We contacted the local authority and Healthwatch. 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 of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with two people who used the service, one relative, a healthcare professional, the cook, two care staff and one activities co-ordinator. We also spoke with the manager, the operations manager and the nominated individual. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We completed a tour of the environment to look at infection control practices and the facilities available for people. We also looked at a range of documentation including three people’s care files and medication records for another three people. We looked at three staff files and reviewed documentation relating to the management and running of the service such as recruitment, induction, supervision and staff training.

After the inspection

We were sent further information which included care plans, staffing levels and planned training for medicines.

Updated 18 September 2019

About the service

Sandpiper Care Home is a care home in the village of Alford. It is registered to provide accommodation and personal care to 30 older people, some of whom may be living with dementia or physical disability. At the time of our inspection, 28 people lived at the service.

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

People were extremely happy with the service and complimentary of staff. One person said, “It's the best care home in Lincolnshire. It's wonderful and [staff] look after us. It's like living in a hotel.”

People felt safe and trusted staff, and there was enough staff to meet people’s needs in a timely way. Recruitment, induction and ongoing training processes helped ensure only suitable staff were employed and that they had the required skills and knowledge. Staff were supported by the management team through supervision, appraisals and meetings.

Staff promoted people’s independence and supported people to maintain their skills safely. Staff respected people as individuals and helped them to follow their own routines by providing appropriate support. People pursued their interests and took part in a wide range of stimulating activities.

People enjoyed the choice and variety of food provided and staff monitored people’s health and wellbeing, ensuring referrals were made to healthcare services in a timely manner. Staff were knowledgeable about the support people needed and followed professional advice, though not all care plans were up to date. People’s privacy and dignity was maintained.

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.

The manager promoted a supportive and positive culture. They worked closely with the provider to maintain a high-quality service. The provider included people in the development of the service and invested in facilities in line with people’s wishes.

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 18 January 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.