Kirkwood Hall

Updated 4 December 2018

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection was planned to check whether the provider is meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on 29 October 2018 and was unannounced. We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of the inspection visit. This is because the registered manager and staff are often out of the office supporting people and we needed to be sure that they would be in.

Inspection site visit activity started on 29 October 2018 and ended on 1 November 2018. It included a visit to the office, visits to people’s homes and telephone calls. We visited the office location on 29 October to see the registered manager and staff and to review care records and policies and procedures. At the time of our inspection there were 23 people who used the service.

This inspection was carried out by one inspector. Before our inspection we reviewed the information held about the service. This included information we received from statutory notifications since the last inspection. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to send us by law. We contacted agencies such as the local authority safeguarding and commissioners. Commissioners are people who work to find appropriate care and support services for people and might fund the care provided. We used all this information to plan our inspection. We did not ask the provider to send us information in the 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.

During the inspection we spoke with three people in their homes and two relatives. We spoke with the registered manager, a team leader, three staff members and the scheme manager who is employed by the housing association responsible for tenant affairs and maintenance of the premises. We also spoke with three health and social care professionals for their feedback on their experiences of the care provided.

Updated 4 December 2018

This inspection took place between 29 October and 1 November. This was the first inspection of the service since it was registered on 08 December 2017.

Kirkwood Hall Extra Care Housing is a domiciliary care agency. It provides personal care to people living in their own houses and flats to predominantly older people.

This service provides care and support to people living in specialist ‘extra care’ housing. Extra care housing is purpose-built or adapted single household accommodation in a shared site or building. The accommodation is rented, and is the occupant’s own home. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements. CQC does not regulate premises used for extra care housing; this inspection looked at people’s personal care and support service.

People using the service at Kirkwood Hall Extra Care Housing lived in apartments. The facility also had apartments and bungalows that were situated in the grounds. There are two rooms reserved for people from the community who need additional support following discharge from hospital or to prevent them from being admitted to hospital. These are known as step up / step down beds. Health professional's work alongside staff to ensure people who require this level of support have their needs met. Kirkwood Hall Extra Care Housing has a restaurant, hairdressing salon, communal areas and a garden.

Not everyone using the service receives regulated activity; CQC only inspects the service being received by people provided with ‘personal care’; help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also take into account any wider social care provided.

A registered manager was 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.

People's needs were assessed and their care was planned to maintain their safety, health and wellbeing. Risks assessments were completed. We have made a recommendation the provider source and use evidence based assessment tools to understand risk and to implement control measures. People told us they felt safe and staff received training in how to recognise and report abuse.

Staff were recruited safely and they received support and supervision to enable them to effectively carry out their roles.

People were supported to eat and drink a healthy diet and staff understood people's dietary needs and preferences. Staff liaised with health and social care professionals to ensure people received the care and treatment they needed.

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. Staff understood the principles of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA). They obtained consent before providing support and respected people’s choices. We have made a recommendation about the provider reviewing their MCA training to ensure staff understand who has legal authority to represent people who lack capacity.

Staff were aware of people's preferences and interests and treated people with dignity and respect and promoted their independence. Person-centred care and support was provided by staff who demonstrated knowledge of people's individual needs. People received care from staff that were caring and kind.

Care plans were reviewed regularly and any changes to the care plans were updated. The provider had a system in place for responding to people's concerns and complaints. People knew how to make a complaint and were confident any concerns or complaints would be listened

to.

People were asked for their views on the service and there were systems in place to monitor and improve the quality of the service provided.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.