Abbottswood Lodge

Updated 14 June 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:

Consisted of one inspector.

Service and service type:

Abbottswood Lodge is a care home that provides care and support to people with learning disabilities, autism and mental healthcare needs.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection:

This was an unannounced inspection visit completed 09 May 2019.

What we did:

Before inspection: We reviewed information, we had received about the service since the last inspection. This included details about incidents the provider must notify us about. We liaised with third party stakeholders. We used all this information to plan our inspection. We used information the provider sent us in the Provider Information Return (PIR). 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.

During the inspection: We spoke with eight people who used the service and one relative during the visit, and one relative after the inspection visit by telephone. We observed care and support provided in communal areas. We spoke with the registered manager, deputy manager, and three members of care staff. We looked at two people’s care and support records in detail and four people’s medicine records. We looked at staff files as well as records relating to the management of the service, recruitment, policies, training and systems for monitoring quality. We requested provision of additional information that was sent to us after the inspection within agreed timescales. After the inspection visit, we contacted two healthcare professionals to request feedback on the service, but this was not provided.

Updated 14 June 2019

About the service: Abbottswood Lodge is a 'care home' providing residential care to people with learning disabilities, autism and mental health conditions. The service is registered to accommodate up to 22 people, there were 19 people living at the service at the time of the inspection.

The care service has been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion. People with learning disabilities and autism using the service can live as ordinary a life as any citizen. Registering the Right Support CQC policy. Details regarding conformity are detailed in the body of the report.

People’s experience of using this service:

People living at Abbottswood Lodge participated in activities and were actively involved in their local community. Staff showed empathy, kindness and compassion. They placed value on their caring roles and involvement in people’s lives. People were offered a choice of meals and staff closely monitored people assessed to be at risk of poor food and fluid intake. The care provided was flexible to meet people’s needs and preferences.

The service was working with people and their families to complete end of life care planning to ensure people received high standards of care and support. People were involved in the planning of their care at that stage of their life. The service had good working relationships with the local GP practice and learning disability healthcare professionals.

The service worked in partnership with people and encouraged feedback on the care provided. We received positive feedback from people about the staff and service received. Staff told us they enjoyed working at Abbottswood Lodge and spoke highly of the support and encouragement provided by the registered manager.

People had their care and support needs met by sufficient numbers of suitably trained staff. The care environment was clean and comfortable throughout, with risk management plans in place. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

The service had good governance arrangements in place and completed internal quality checks and audits. Findings from these were regularly reviewed by the registered manager and provider.

Rating at last inspection: Abbottswood Lodge was previously inspected 29 June 2016, rated as Good in all key questions. The report was published 12 October 2016.

Why we inspected: This was a scheduled, comprehensive inspection, completed in line with our inspection schedule for services rated as Good.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor this service and will reinspect in line with our schedule for those services rated as Good.

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