Longrun House

Updated 30 July 2021

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.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector and an Expert by Experience. This is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service. The inspector visited the home on 29 June 2021 and the Expert by Experience made phone calls to relatives of people who lived there. They spoke with 10 relatives.

Service and service type

Longrun House is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

What we did before the inspection

We spoke with three relatives on several occasions. We reviewed all the other information we had received about the service since the last inspection. The provider was not asked to complete a provider information return prior to this inspection. This is information we require providers to send us to give some key information about the service, what the service does well and improvements they plan to make. We took this into account when we inspected the service and made the judgements in this report. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We met 10 people who lived at the home and had very limited conversations and interaction with three people. We spoke with six members of staff including the deputy manager, a senior care worker, care workers and the chef. We also used the Short Observational Framework for Inspection (SOFI). SOFI is a way of observing care to help us understand the experience of people who could not talk with us.

We reviewed some records. This included medication records and two staff files in relation to recruitment, induction training and staff supervision.

After the inspection

We asked the provider to send us a wide range of information. This included five people’s care records and risk assessments, quality assurance audits, family and staff survey information, information about complaints which had been made, copies of staff rotas and some policies and procedures. We also contacted health and social care professionals involved in people’s care for their views on the service. We did not receive received feedback from any professionals.

Updated 30 July 2021

About the service

Longrun House is a residential care home providing personal care for up to 17 people who have a learning disability and physical disability. There were 15 people living at the home at the time of the inspection.

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

Communication with relatives needed to be improved. This had also been raised in the recent relative’s survey as an area for improvement. It was clear the relationship with three parents needed to be improved and trust regained.

People were safe at the home. They were comfortable and relaxed with the staff who supported them. Lessons were learnt, and changes made, when things went wrong.

Eleven relatives thought the home was a safe place for their family members to live; they had no concerns about people’s safety. Two relatives had concerns about some aspects of safety which they had discussed.

Staff knew how to recognise and report concerns about possible abuse.

Risk assessments were used to ensure people received safe care and support according to their individual needs. Risks to people’s physical health had been considered and planned for.

There were adequate numbers of staff to keep people safe and meet their needs. There was consistent staffing and that staff were allocated to specific duties each day at the handover meeting when the shift began. Ten relatives were happy with how staff were allocated and with consistency of staffing. Three relatives were not happy with this.

People received their medicines safely and at the right time. Medicines were stored safely, including medicines which required refrigeration. There were suitable arrangements for ordering, receiving and disposal of medicines. People were protected from catching and spreading infections.

The service was well-organised, with clear lines of responsibility and accountability. There was honesty and accountability when things went wrong.

There was a clear structure within the staff team ensuring staff understood their own roles and responsibilities. Staff had high confidence in the management team.

Ten relatives had confidence in the management of the home and in the provider. Three relatives did not have complete confidence in the service and had made their concerns known.

Audits, surveys and observations were used to try to improve the care and facilities for people; where shortfalls were identified action was taken to make sure improvements were made.

Staff morale and teamwork were good. Staff were positive, energetic and engaged with people, treating them with kindness, dignity and respect.

Staff worked in partnership with other professionals, such as speech and language therapists and GPs to make sure people’s individual needs were met.

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.

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee autistic people and people with a learning disability the choices, dignity, independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. Right Support, Right Care, Right Culture is the statutory guidance which supports CQC to make assessments and judgements about services providing support to people with a learning disability and/or autistic people.

The service was able to demonstrate how they were meeting the underpinning principles of Right support, right care, right culture. People were at the centre of their service and had high levels of staff support so they could lead fulfilling lives. Staff treated each person with dignity, respect and as an individual, respecting their abilities, choices and human rights.

Right support:

• Model of care and setting maximises people’s choice, control and independence

Right care:

• Care is person-centred and promotes people’s dignity, privacy and human rights

Right culture:

• Ethos, values, attitudes and behaviours of leaders and care staff ensure people using services lead confident, inclusive and empowered lives

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published 1 March 2019).

Why we inspected

We received concerns in relation to staffing numbers, how staff were allocated and the involvement of people’s relatives and communication with them, including when they raised any concerns with the service. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of ‘Safe’ and ‘Well-Led’ only.

We reviewed the information we held about the service. No areas of concern were identified in the other key questions. We therefore did not inspect them. Ratings from previous comprehensive inspections for those key questions were used in calculating the overall rating at this inspection.

We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from these concerns. However, it was evident that communication with people’s relatives needed to be improved.

We looked at infection prevention and control measures under the ‘Safe’ key question. We look at this in all care home inspections even if no concerns or risks have been identified. This is to provide assurance that the service can respond to COVID-19 and other infection outbreaks effectively.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Longrun House on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

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.