Archived: Oak Bungalow

• Risks to people were not always thoroughly assessed and mitigated.

• There was some inconsistency around care planning, risk assessment and recording of medicines.

• Staff did not always support people to communicate and interact according to their needs in a caring way.

• Care plans were not always accurate and up to date.

• Care was not always person-centred.

• Governance systems did not always identify areas for improvement and action was not always taken.

• There were enough staff and they were recruited safely.

Rating at last inspection: ‘Good’ overall, and in effective, caring, responsive and well-led, with ‘Requires Improvement’ in safe - (published 12 July 2016).

About the service: Oak Bungalow is a care home with nursing for up to six people. There was a manager who is registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the services are run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Why we inspected: We inspected this service in line with our inspection schedule for services currently rated Good.

Follow up: We will continue to monitor this service according to our inspection schedule.

Oak Bungalow is a care home offering support to a maximum of six younger people who have physical disabilities. At the time of this inspection there were six people living there. It is situated in the same grounds as another of the provider's care homes. It receives staffing and management support from this nearby, larger home.

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 minor concerns about how risks within the environment were minimised promptly to ensure people's safety. However, individual risks associated with people's health were assessed with guidance about how these were to be managed to promote people's safety. People's medicines were managed safely.

Background checks were completed on staff to make sure they were not barred from work in care services. However, checks on employment histories were not as robust as they should be in contributing to safety. There were enough staff to contribute to supporting people safely and staff understood their obligations to report any concerns about risk or harm for people. Staff had access to training to enable them to support people competently. This included training that was focused on the specific needs of people using the service.

Mealtimes were a relaxed and pleasant experience for people. They had access to enough to eat and drink to meet their needs and were able to take part in meal preparation if they wished. They were able to access the kitchen to make drinks when they wished.

Staff understood people's needs and preferences and delivered support which took these into account. They had developed good relationships with people using the service and promoted their dignity and respect. People's concerns and views were listened to and acted upon.

The home benefited from a stable management team who were well qualified and understood their roles. Staff were well-motivated to delivery good quality care. There were systems to check the quality and safety of the service and consult with people living and working in the home. However, these were completed across the site and not specific to Oak Bungalow.