Scott House

Updated 30 May 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. 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:

• Our inspection was completed by one inspector.

Service and service type

• Scott House provides care and support for up to 19 adults living with long term mental health needs. There were 14 people living at the service when we inspected it.

• The service is required to have a registered manager. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are 'registered persons'. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the service is run. At the time of our inspection, a manager was registered with us.

Notice of inspection

• Our inspection was unannounced. Inspection site visit activity started on 9 April 2019 and ended on 16 April 2019. We visited the office location on these two dates to see the registered manager and staff; and to review care records and policies and procedures.

What we did

• Our inspection was informed by evidence we already held about the service. We also checked for feedback we received from members of the public and the local authority commissioning and quality monitoring group.

• We asked the service to complete a Provider Information Return. This is information we require providers to send us at least once annually to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make.

• We spoke with seven people who used the service.

• We spoke with the registered manager, the deputy manager, a nurse, three support workers and the cook.

• We reviewed three people's care records, three staff personnel files, audits and other records about the management of the service.

• After the inspection we spoke with three relatives of people who used the service.

Updated 30 May 2019

About the service

Scott House is a residential care home that was providing personal care for up to 19 people living with long term mental health needs. There were 14 people using the service at the time of our visit.

People's experience of using this service

• People were happy living at Scott House, they told us they felt safe and liked the staff who supported them. Relatives were also happy with the service and they felt welcomed when they visited and said that staff maintained contact to inform them of any changes. Staff said they were proud to be working at the service and enjoyed their jobs.

• People, relatives, staff and health and social care professionals said the registered manager and the staff team were approachable and supportive. There were enough staff to meet people's needs. There was a robust recruitment process so the provider knew they only employed suitable staff.

• The provider had systems in place to keep people safe from identified risks. Staff knew to report any concerns that arose. Risks were managed to keep people as safe as possible. Staff received the training they required so they had the knowledge and skills to do their job and meet people's needs.

• Staff gave people their prescribed medicines safely. They followed good practice guidelines to help prevent the spread of infection. People had access to the healthcare services they required.

• People and their relatives told us they enjoyed their meals. There was a variety of healthy meals based on people's choices and nutritional needs.

• People were encouraged to make choices in all aspects of their lives. Staff knew each person well, including their likes and dislikes and their preferences about how they wanted staff to care for them.

• Staff respected people's privacy and dignity and encouraged people to be as independent as possible.

• People and their relatives told us they knew how to complain and were confident that the registered manager would resolve their complaints.

• There were effective quality monitoring processes in place including seeking the views and feedback of people who used the service and their relatives. Scott House was homely and staff did everything they could to make people's lives as comfortable and fulfilling as possible.

We found the service met the characteristics of a "Good" rating in all areas

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

Rating at last inspection: At the last inspection the service was rated as Requires Improvement [report published on 30 May 2018].

Why we inspected: This was a planned inspection based on the rating at the last inspection. The rating has improved to Good overall.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor intelligence we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our inspection programme. If any concerning information is received we may inspect sooner.