We carried out a review of the data available to us about Wisteria House on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.
This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.
If you have concerns about Wisteria House, you can give feedback on this service.
Wisteria House is a residential care home providing personal care. This service does not provide nursing care. Wisteria House can accommodate up to seven people. At the time of our inspection seven people were living at the service. The service is based over two floors with communal areas for people to enjoy and use as well as a large accessible garden.
The service has been developed and designed in line with the principles and values that underpin Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. This ensures that people who use the service can live as full a life as possible and achieve the best possible outcomes. The principles reflect the need for people with learning disabilities and/or autism to live meaningful lives that include control, choice, and independence. People using the service receive planned and co-ordinated person-centred support that is appropriate and inclusive for them.
People’s experience of using this service and what we found
Peoples care plans contained risk assessments which had been written from an assessment of the person’s needs and was updated as necessary. Staff were aware of the contents of the care plan so that they knew the individual requirements of each person and how to support them.
Sufficient members of staff were deployed with regard to the needs of the people using the service. Systems to recruit staff safely were robust and the registered manager had commenced involving people using the service in the staff recruitment process. Staff had received training including the safeguarding of people, infection control, administration of medicines and de-escalating techniques. Staff also informed us they had regular supervision and a yearly appraisal.
People had access to health professionals when needed. People were supported to maintain a healthy diet and support was planned to meet the assessed nutritional and health needs. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their life and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported his practice.
People’s privacy, independence and dignity were supported and respected by the staff. We observed staff listening carefully to and supporting people to make choices. People received a responsive service which was adaptable to support their needs depending upon their needs. There were systems in place to assess, plan and meet their individual needs and preferences. There was a complaints procedure in place. Relatives were involved in their care planning and the review of the care provided as appropriate.
The registered manager told us the about the aims of the service and the actions they had taken since being appointed which included recruitment, staff training and increasing the involvement of the people at Wisteria House in the running of the service. The registered manager completed audits to determine the quality of the care being provided and was further developing the staff skills in completing audits. Staff worked closely as necessary with other professionals to provide care to the people using the service. People’s views about the service were sought and acted upon for example, with determining the decorating of the communal areas.
The outcomes for people using the service reflected the principles and values of Registering the Right Support by promoting choice and control, independence and inclusion. People's support focused on them having as many opportunities as possible for them to gain new skills and become more independent.
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 19 July 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.
At the last inspection of 31 March 2015 the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the service remained Good.
There was a registered manager in post. 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.
The service continued to provide a safe service to people. This included systems in place intended to minimise the risks to people, including from abuse and with their medicines. Staff were available when people needed assistance and the recruitment of staff continued to be safe.
People were supported by staff who were trained and supported to meet their needs. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Systems were in place to assess and meet people’s dietary and health needs.
Staff had good relationships with people who used the service. People were involved in making decisions about their care and support. People received care and support which was planned and delivered to meet their specific needs. People were supported to participate in meaningful activities.
The service had a quality assurance system and shortfalls were identified and addressed. As a result the quality of the service continued to improve. A complaints procedure was in place.
Further information is in the detailed findings below.
We inspected this service on 31 March and 10 April 2015 and the inspection was unannounced. Wisteria House is a residential service for seven people living with a learning disability or mild mental health issues.
There was a registered manager in post. 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.
There were enough staff to support people safely and staff knew what to do if they suspected someone may be being abused or harmed. Recruitment practices were robust and contributed to protecting people from staff who were unsuitable to work in care. Medicines were managed and stored properly and safely so that people received them as the prescriber intended.
Staff had received the training they needed to understand how to meet people’s needs. They understood the importance of gaining consent from people before delivering their care or treatment. Staff were clear about their roles. Where people were not able to give informed consent staff and the manager ensured their rights were protected.
People have enough to eat and drink to meet their needs and staff supported them to make their own choices about what to have on the menu, what they needed to shop for and cooking the meal.
Staff treated people with warmth and compassion. They were respectful of people’s privacy and dignity and offered comfort and reassurance when people were distressed or unsettled. Staff also made sure that people who were becoming unwell were referred promptly to healthcare professionals for treatment and advice about their health and welfare.
Staff showed commitment to understanding and responding to each person’s needs and preferences so that they could engage meaningfully with people. Outings and outside entertainment was offered to people and staff supported people in their choice of activities on a daily basis.
Staff understood the importance of responding to and resolving concerns quickly if they were able to do so. Staff also ensured that more serious complaints were passed on to the management team for investigation. People told us that any complaints they made would be addressed by the manager.
The service had consistent leadership. The staff told us that the manager was supportive and easy to talk to and in the manager’s absence during a period of extended leave, the providers had taken action to ensure that the people who use the service and the staff were properly supported. During this inspection the acting manager was responsible for monitoring the quality and safety of the service and asked people for their views so that improvements identified were made where possible. The organisation also carried out quality assurance visits, set action plans and checked the actions had been undertaken.
We observed that the staff were attentive to people's needs. Staff interacted with people in a friendly, respectful and professional manner. We saw that staff sought people's agreement before providing any support or assistance.
People's nutritional needs were met and people told us that they enjoyed their food and that they helped with the shopping and the cooking. One person said, 'I help choose dinner and help to cook it sometimes.'
We spoke with three staff members, they told us they were supported through supervision and that they believed they were trained sufficiently to support people with learning disabilities in all aspects of their lives.
We saw that the provider had an effective system to regularly assess and monitor the quality of service that people received.