Archived: Tudor House

Updated 31 March 2016

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, to look at the overall quality of the service, and to provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

This inspection took place on the 17 February 2016. It was carried out by one inspector and was unannounced.

Prior to the inspection we looked at all the information we had collected about the service. This included any notifications the service had sent us. A notification is information about important events which the service is required to tell us about by law.

During the inspection we sought feedback from people who use the service, their relatives, staff and health and social care professionals. We obtained the views of two people who use the service. Additionally we spoke with the registered manager, interim support manager, team leader, three support staff and one social care professional.

We looked at three people’s records and records that were used by staff to monitor their care. In addition we looked at two staff recruitment files, staff training records and documents, which related to the management and quality monitoring of the service.

Updated 31 March 2016

Tudor House is a care home which is registered to provide care (without nursing) for up to six people with learning disabilities. The home is a detached building within a secluded area of West Berkshire. People have their own bedrooms and use of communal areas that includes an enclosed private garden. The people living in the home needed care from staff at all times and have a range of care needs.

The service had a registered manager. 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.

People who use the service had a range of communication abilities that ranged from verbal communication to the use of picture references to indicate their needs and wishes. These were understood by staff and enabled them to support those individual’s to make choices and express their views. Staff treated people with kindness and respect. They had contact with families of people who wanted to be involved to make sure they were fully informed about the care and support their relative received.

People’s safety was promoted within the home and they were involved in the recruitment of staff. The recruitment and selection process helped to ensure people were supported by staff of good character. There was a sufficient number of qualified and trained staff to meet people’s needs safely. This included existing and agency staff to make up the staff team. Staff knew how to recognise and report any concerns they had about the care and welfare of people to protect them from abuse. People’s medicine was managed safely.

People were provided with effective care from a staff team who had received support through supervision, staff meetings and training. Their care and support plans had been reviewed and detailed how they wanted their needs to be met. Risk assessments identified risks associated with personal and specific behavioural and or health related issues. They helped to promote people’s independence whilst minimising any risks.

The service had taken the necessary action to ensure they were working in a way which recognised and maintained people’s rights. They understood the relevance of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA), Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) and consent issues which related to the people and their care.

People were encouraged to live a fulfilled life with activities of their choosing that were structured around their needs and individual to each person. Meals were nutritious and varied and people told us the food at the service was good.

People had the opportunity to be involved in decisions about the home. This included discussions and consent from people about the provider’s proposal to relocate the service to an area within the heart of a community village. This was to minimise the risk of social isolation for the people who lived in Tudor House and to give them better access to services within the community.

People benefitted from living at a service that had an open and friendly culture. The provider had an effective system to regularly assess and monitor the quality of service that people received. There were various formal methods used for assessing and improving the quality of care. This had resulted in improved quality monitoring processes and records to support people the way they wanted to be supported.