All inspections: Stratfield Lodge Residential Home

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 and to pilot a new inspection process being introduced by CQC which looks at the overall quality of the service.

This was an unannounced inspection. During the visit, we spoke with four people, four staff, the home manager (who manages the home on a day to day basis), the registered manager and the representatives of the provider. The registered manager and the representatives of the provider are a family. As part of the inspection we also sought the views of four relatives and health and social care professionals.

There was a registered manager at the home. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service and shares the legal responsibility for meeting the requirements of the law with the provider.

Stratfield Lodge Residential Home provides accommodation and personal care for 17 people who have learning disabilities, mental health and/or dementia care needs. At the time of the inspection there were 17 people living at the home.

Some of the people who lived at the home had complex needs and were not able to tell us their experiences. We saw that those people and the people we spoke with were smiling, happy and relaxed in the home.

People told us they felt safe at the home. Staff knew how to recognise any signs of abuse. However, they had not made a safeguarding referral as they should have when someone had received poor nursing care in another health setting.

We saw people received care and support in a personalised way. Staff knew people well and understood their needs. We found that people received the health, personal and social care and support they needed. However, we found that one person’s received the care they needed and staff knew how to care for them but there was not a written plan on how to care for this person.

We found that staff were caring and treated people with dignity and respect. People had access to the local community and had individual activities provided.

Staff received an induction, core training and some specialist training so they had the skills and knowledge to meet people’s needs.

People, staff, relatives and professionals commented on the friendly and family atmosphere at the home. One person said: “I’m so happy here. I go out with staff and the owner; there is not one member of staff that I don’t like”. A relative told us: “I have total confidence in them, I like that it is family run”. There was a person centred culture at the home with a focus on people being involved in all aspects of the home. There was a clear management structure and staff, representatives and people felt comfortable talking to the managers about any concerns and ideas for improvements. There were systems in place to monitor the safety and quality of the service provided.

At the time of the inspection 17 people were living at Stratfield Lodge. The registered manager showed us round the home. The premises were well maintained and rooms were light and bright, providing an attractive and interesting environment. Everyone had their own bedroom which was personalised to reflect their interests and support needs. One person had a room which enabled them to have a greater degree of independence away from the main house. There was a separate activities room which people went to during the day and a newly developed sensory room adjacent to the house. Staff told us this provided a quiet space for people.

We talked with three people. One person told us 'I like it here'.

We spoke with the registered manager, the day to day manager, three support staff, three activities coordinators, the cook and the cleaner. Staff told us 'I really like the residents. Everyone is different and need different things.' Another said 'It is really good here. The managers really care about people'.

Care and support were planned and delivered so as to ensure the welfare of people using the service and to meet their individual needs.

People were supported to have their nutrition needs met.

We found that people were protected from the risks associated with unsafe management of medication because there were effective systems in place.

People using the service benefited from a staff team who were well trained and supported to do their job.

We spoke with the manager, three members of staff and a family member that were at the home on the day of the inspection. We observed interactions between staff and people and viewed care records. There were enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff to meet people's needs.

The manager told us that the home did have a keyworker system. They said that all staff however were involved in supporting each individual at the home. This meant that people benefited from knowing all the staff who supported them and anxiety was reduced if a staff member was ill or on leave.

We saw staff levels were flexible according to activities people were undertaking. For example, when we arrived in the home there were six staff on duty.

We found that care plans detailed the support the person wanted or needed and they received care from relevant professionals to meet their needs. One relative described their satisfaction with all aspects of the care and support provided to their family member.

We saw that communication promoted inclusion and respect. This indicated the home was committed to maximising people's choice, control and inclusion to reduce the potential for abuse.

We noted appropriate professional development and training supported the provider to ensure they understood how to best meet people's needs.

The provider had an effective system in place to identify, assess and manage risks to the health, safety and welfare of people using the service and others.

We were unable to get the views of people living at Stratfield Lodge. The people living there had very complex needs and required high levels of support and care. None of the people in the home at the time of our visit were able to express their opinions meaningfully about the outcome groups we were looking at and assessing.

Consequently the experiences of people living at Strafield Lodge that we refer to in our report are based on our observations of the support that we saw the home's staff providing for individuals living there. They were also based on the views about the service of some relatives and social and health care professionals who we spoke to on the telephone following our visit.

We saw staff explaining to and showing people how they could do things and watching them to make sure that they did not injure themselves. We saw them helping individuals' at meal times and supporting them to take medicines that they required. Staff were always polite, sensitive, and when supporting people doing it in ways that promoted and respected their choices and promoted their dignity, privacy and independence.

One relative who said that they visited Stratfield Lodge every week described it as 'brilliant'. They said that their relative was' looked after very well' and also that they seemed 'happy'.

Another relative told us that their relative had been accommodated in a number of different establishments and that Stratfield Lodge was the 'best'. They said that staff went 'the extra mile' in order to ensure that their relative received the care they needed.

Social and health care professionals told us, that the service provided at Stratfield Lodge was very good and the home was able to meet the changing physical and emotional needs of people living there.

Archived: Stratfield Lodge Residential Home

All Inspections

9 July 2014

During a routine inspection

6 January 2014

During a routine inspection

10 January 2013

During a routine inspection

28 March 2011

During an inspection in response to concerns