Archived: Peppercorn House

Peppercorn House has 23 self-contained apartments arranged over three floors and is located in Ipswich. The accommodation is rented and is the occupant’s own home. CQC does not regulate premises used for extra care housing. The building is owned and maintained by a housing association. People’s care and housing are provided under separate contractual agreements.

Not everyone who used the service received personal care. CQC only inspects where people receive personal care. This is help with tasks related to personal hygiene and eating. Where they do we also consider any wider social care provided. At the time of the inspection Peppercorn House was providing personal care to 19 people.

We found the following examples of good practice.

We observed staff following good infection prevention and control practices including appropriate use of personal protective equipment (PPE) in line with government guidance to reduce the risk of infection.

Peppercorn House was clean throughout. Increased cleaning was taking place across all aspects of the service. This included ensuring all high touch points were regularly sanitised.

Windows and doors were observed to be open in the building to support with ventilation whilst a comfortable temperature was maintained.

Polices, and procedures were in place to assist the registered manager and staff to manage any risks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

People living at Peppercorn House and staff were undertaking COVID-19 testing in line with Government guidance. Appropriate action had been taken if anyone contracted the virus including staff who were supported to self-isolate. Staff absence was being effectively managed where shift cover was required.

People had clear care plans in place in relation to COVID-19, this ensured risks could be mitigated and people could be supported in a personalised way.

At our last inspection of 3 February 2016 the service was rated Good. At this inspection we found the evidence continued to support the rating of Good and there was no evidence or information from our inspection and ongoing monitoring that demonstrated serious risks or concerns. This inspection report is written in a shorter format because our overall rating of the service has not changed since our last inspection.

The service continued to be safe. This included systems designed to minimise the risks to people, including from abuse and in their daily lives. There were systems in place for the service to learn from incidents to improve the service. There were care workers to cover people’s planned care visits. Recruitment of care workers was done safely. Where people required support with their medicines, these were administered safely. There were infection control procedures in place to guide care workers in how to minimise the risks of cross infection.

The service continued to be effective. People were supported by care workers who were trained and supported to meet their needs. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and care workers cared for them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Where people required support with their dietary needs, systems were in place to deliver this. People were supported to have access to health professionals where needed. The service worked with other organisations involved in people’s care to provide consistent care.

The service continued to be caring. People had positive relationships with the care workers. People’s dignity, privacy and independence were respected and promoted. Their views were listened to and valued.

The service continued to be responsive. People received care which was assessed, planned and delivered to meet their individual needs. There were systems in place to support and care for people at the end of their lives, where required. A complaints procedure was in place and concerns were acted upon and used to improve the service.

The service continued to be well-led. The service used comments from people and incidents to learn from and to drive improvement. The service had a quality assurance system and shortfalls were identified and addressed. As a result the quality of the service continued to improve.

Further information is in the detailed findings below.

We spoke with three visitors to the service who were positive about the care and treatment their friend/relative received. One person told us, 'I am really happy with the care provided here. There are always people (staff) around to keep an eye on (person using the service). This is a great relief and peace of mind for me.' Another person said, 'Since they (person using the service) have come here they have improved so much. It's a much nicer environment for them being here than in a nursing home. There is much more freedom to come and visit them in their own flat and the staff help them remain independent. They (person using the service) are always involved in something that's going on here.'

We looked at five care plans which were person centred with information for staff on how to meet individual's health and care needs. People's choices and preferences were reflected in the care records and written in a way that promoted independence.

We looked at medication records which showed there were arrangements in place for the safe handling, storage and administration of medicines.

We saw that the service provided enough qualified, skilled and experienced staff to meet people's needs. We looked at staff records and spoke with five members of staff who told us they were being appropriately supervised and supported. We talked with three staff members about meeting people's needs and they were knowledgeable about the people they supported.

We saw that the provider had systems and procedures in place to regularly monitor and assess the quality of the service provided. We also looked at the way that complaints were recorded and dealt with, and saw that they were handled in line with the provider's policy.

During our inspection we observed that the interaction between staff and people using the service was friendly, respectful and professional. Staff respected people's privacy and dignity and sought their agreement before providing any support or assistance. One person told us that when they were supported with their personal care needs, 'The staff here treat me with dignity and respect and it's never been seen as a problem. They deal with it professionally and this has improved my confidence and helped me become more independent and get my freedom back.'