18 Acorn Avenue

Updated 1 July 2023

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 Health and Social Care Act 2008.

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 1 inspector.

Service and service type

18 Acorn Avenue is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. 18 Acorn Avenue is a care home without nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations.

At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced.

Inspection activity started on 05 June 2023 and ended on 13 June 2023. We visited the location on 05 June 2023, and made telephone calls to people’s relatives on 08 and 13 June 2023.

What we did before inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return (PIR). This is information providers are required to send us annually with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spent time with 1 person using the service and spoke with 2 relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with 1 member of staff, the registered manager and the area manager responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider. We reviewed a range of records, including 1 person’s care plan, 3 staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision and a variety of records relating to the management of the service.

Updated 1 July 2023

About the service

18 Acorn Avenue provides accommodation with personal care for up to 3 people with a learning disability or who are autistic. At the time of this inspection there were 2 people using the service.

We expect health and social care providers to guarantee people with a learning disability and autistic people respect, equality, dignity, choices and independence and good access to local communities that most people take for granted. 'Right support, right care, right culture' is the guidance CQC follows to make assessments and judgements about services supporting people with a learning disability and autistic people. Providers must have regard to the guidance. People's experience of using this service and what we found.

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

18 Acorn Avenue is situated in a residential area. There was nothing outside to show it was a care home. The building was a similar size to other properties with a garden, which people have access to. Internally the premises were spacious and well designed for the people living there.

Right support

The service had enough staff, including for 1-to-1 support for people to keep them safe and take part in activities, when they wanted. The numbers and skills of staff matched the needs of people using the service.

Staff showed a genuine interest in people's well-being and quality of life. They were kind, caring and nurturing and as a result we saw people were at ease, happy, engaged and stimulated. 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.

People were supported to access healthcare services to promote their wellbeing and help them to live healthy lives. Staff managed risks to minimise restrictions, focusing on what people could do for themselves. Systems were followed by staff to ensure medicines were managed safely. However, we have made a recommendation about the safe storage of medicines.

Right Care:

Staff delivered care in line with information in people's care plans and recognised models of care for people with a learning disability or autistic people. This ensured people were receiving care tailored to them which promoted a good quality of life.

Staff understood people's individual communication styles and we saw they had developed a good rapport with them. People were supported to develop and maintain relationships, follow interests and take part in activities that were socially and culturally relevant to them.

People were kept safe from avoidable harm because staff knew them well and understood how to protect them from abuse. Staff had training on how to recognise and report abuse and they knew how to apply it. The registered manager worked well with other agencies to safeguard people. Investigations into incidents had been used as an opportunity to learn lessons, change practice, and drive improvement.

Staff recruitment, induction and training processes promoted safety, including those for agency staff. People were supported by staff who had received a wide range of relevant and good quality training to meet their needs.

The service had effective infection, prevention and control measures to keep people safe, including good arrangements for keeping the premises clean and hygienic.

Right Culture:

The registered manager had worked hard to instil a culture of care where staff felt truly valued. There was a transparent, open and honest culture between people, those important to them, staff and managers. The attitudes and behaviours of the manager and staff ensured people using the service lead inclusive and empowered lives. Staff understood their role in making sure that people were always put first. They provided person centred care and sought to protect and promote people's rights.

The service had effective governance arrangements in place to assess the quality and safety of the service. These were used to identify and drive improvement. Systems were in place to apologise to people, and those important to them, when things went wrong.

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

Rating at last inspection and update:

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 04 February 2022). At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions Safe and Well-led. For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.

Why we inspected

This was a focused inspection to check the provider had made improvements in relation to the Key Questions Safe and Well-led and prompted by a review of the information we held about this service to assure ourselves people were receiving safe, good quality care.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for 18 Acorn Avenue on our website at www.cqc.org.uk.

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.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.