• Care Home
  • Care home

Seaham View

Overall: Good read more about inspection ratings

31-32 North Road, Seaham, County Durham, SR7 7AB (0191) 581 9609

Provided and run by:
Swanton Care & Community (Autism North) Limited

All Inspections

6 July 2023

During a monthly review of our data

We carried out a review of the data available to us about Seaham View on 6 July 2023. We have not found evidence that we need to carry out an inspection or reassess our rating at this stage.

This could change at any time if we receive new information. We will continue to monitor data about this service.

If you have concerns about Seaham View, you can give feedback on this service.

24 August 2022

During an inspection looking at part of 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 and providers must have regard to it.

About the service

Seaham View is a care home and provides accommodation and support for up to 12 people living with a learning disability. There were 12 people living at the service when we visited.

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

Right Support

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 on the whole supported this practice. In various ways people were regularly asked for their opinions and gave them freely.

People were supported safely with medicines. Infection prevention and control reflected good practice. Staff enabled people to access specialist health and social care support in the community. People had accessed preventative services such as screening for health conditions.

Right Care

Staff promoted equality and diversity in their support for people. Staff understood how to protect people from poor care and abuse. The service worked well with other agencies to do so. The service had enough appropriately skilled staff to meet people’s needs and keep them safe. Where people had support, this was flexible, available when they needed it and to the level they needed. Staff understood and responded to people’s individual needs. Staff understood people’s individual communication needs.

Right culture

The service was open to new ways of working and ongoing improvements were introduced to promote independence and inclusivity. People received good quality care, support and treatment because trained staff could meet their needs and wishes. Additional training needs were explored with staff and provided to meet people’s needs. Staff placed people’s wishes, needs and rights at the heart of everything they did. They sought advice and feedback from everyone involved in people's care. Staff were aware of and working to best practice guidance for supporting people with a learning disability and/or autistic people.

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 28 February 2020). At the time we found the service was in breach of one regulation regarding the effectiveness of the service’s quality assurance. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulations.

Why we inspected

We undertook this focused inspection to check they had followed their action plan and to confirm they now met legal requirements. This report only covers our findings in relation to the Key Questions safe, effective and well-led which contain those requirements.

We assessed whether the service is applying the principles of Right support right care right culture. 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.

For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating. The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good. This is based on the findings at this inspection.

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

17 December 2019

During a routine inspection

About the service

Seaham View is a care home and provides accommodation and support for up to 12 people living with a learning disability. There were 12 people living at the service when we visited.

The care service had been developed and designed in line with the values that underpin the Registering the Right Support and other best practice guidance. These values include choice, promotion of independence and inclusion.

People’s experience of using this service

People and relatives spoke positively about the care and support provided.

Staffing levels were sufficient to allow staff to support people to meet their individual needs. New staff were recruited safely. The service had no records to confirm agency staff received an induction prior to supporting people.

Although mental capacity assessments and best interest decisions were mentioned in support plans these documents were not in place. Fire drills had not been completed in line with the provider’s policy. Records for signing in and out of the building were inaccurate. The service addressed this matter during the inspection. Quality assurance systems were not always effective.

Systems were in place to ensure people were protected from the risk of abuse and harm. Staff had learnt lessons around how to support people to communicate concerns about staff practices. Staff completed safeguarding training and were confident any concerns would be investigated appropriately. A thorough recruitment process was in place and people were involved in the selection of staff.

Support plans were lengthy, provided generic information and at times did not specify exactly what staff were to do. Individual risks to people were not always managed effectively.

Health and safety checks were regularly conducted to make sure people had a safe environment. People received their medicines safely. Incidents and accidents were recorded and reviewed as individual incidents.

People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives and staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice. Information was provided in accessible formats, but this needed to be extended to people’s care records.

Physical interventions were used at times and staff were working to consider how they could reduce these. The positive behavioural support plans set out how to understand people’s emotional state and contained guidance for staff.

People and staff had developed positive relationships; we observed kind interactions between people and staff. Staff clearly knew people well and had extensive knowledge about their care needs. Relatives told us about positive outcomes. One relative said, “I am amazed at what [person] is achieving.”

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

Rating at last inspection

The last rating for this service was good (published on 2 June 2017).

Why we inspected

This was a planned inspection based on the previous rating.

Enforcement

We identified one breach of regulation regarding the effectiveness of the service’s quality assurance processes during the inspection. Please see the 'action we have told the provider to take' section towards the end of the report.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service until we return to visit as per our re-inspection programme. If we receive any concerning information we may inspect sooner.

13 April 2017

During a routine inspection

This inspection took place on 13 and 19 April 2017 and was unannounced. This meant the staff and registered provider did not know we would be visiting.

Seaham View provides care and accommodation for up to 12 people with a learning disability. On the day of our inspection there were 10 people using the service.

The service had a registered manager in place. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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.

We last inspected the service in February 2015 and rated the service as ‘Good.’ At this inspection we found the service remained ‘Good’ and met all the fundamental standards we inspected against.

There were sufficient numbers of staff on duty in order to meet the needs of people who used the service. The registered provider had an effective recruitment and selection procedure in place and carried out relevant checks when they employed staff.

The registered manager understood their responsibilities with regard to safeguarding and staff had been trained in safeguarding vulnerable adults.

The home was clean, spacious and suitable for the people who used the service and appropriate health and safety checks had been carried out.

Risk assessments were in place when required and accidents and incidents were appropriately recorded and analysed.

Appropriate arrangements were in place for the administration and storage of medicines.

Staff received regular supervisions and appraisals. The majority of staff mandatory training was up to date and where gaps had been identified, training was planned.

The registered provider was working within the principles of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA) and was following the requirements in the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS).

Healthcare professionals had been consulted and staff were appropriately trained to ensure people were protected from the risk of poor nutrition.

People who used the service and family members were complimentary about the standard of care at Seaham View.

Staff treated people with dignity and respect and helped to maintain people’s independence by encouraging them to care for themselves where possible.

Care records showed that people’s needs were assessed before they started using the service and care plans were written in a person-centred way. Person-centred is about ensuring the person is at the centre of any care or support plans and their individual wishes, needs and choices are taken into account.

People who used the service were consulted about activities and interests, and activities were arranged based on people’s likes and interests and to help meet their social needs.

The registered provider had an effective complaints procedure in place and people who used the service and family members were aware of how to make a complaint.

The service had good links with the local community and local organisations.

Staff felt supported by the management team and were comfortable raising any concerns. People who used the service, family members and staff were regularly consulted about the quality of the service.

03/02/2015 and 10/02/2015

During a routine inspection

This inspection took place on 3 and 10 February 2015 and was unannounced. This meant the staff and provider did not know we would be visiting.        

Seaham View provides care and support for up to 12 people with a learning disability, autistic spectrum disorder, and associated complex needs. On the day of our inspection there were 10 people using the service.      

The home had a registered manager in place, as well as a temporary acting manager and a newly appointed manager who was in induction. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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.      

Seaham View was last inspected by CQC on 1 October 2014 and was rated as inadequate however improvments were noted at this inspection.     

There were sufficient numbers of staff on duty in order to meet the needs of people using the service. The provider had an effective recruitment and selection procedure in place and carried out relevant checks when they employed staff.      

Thorough investigations had been carried out in response to safeguarding incidents or allegations and a medication audit had been carried out by the acting manager.    

The recording of incidents was not consistent and this had been identified as an issue by the provider. Staff and management were aware of this and were reviewing systems to see how they could ensure information was captured and used to improve people’s experience of the service, and the safety of people and staff.   

Staff training had been planned and most staff had been trained in autism awareness and positive behaviour support. We saw training was planned and monitored to ensure all staff had the relevant training to carry out their role.   

Staff were able to tell us about the knowledge they had gained from autism specific training and how it had improved their work and relationships with people they supported.  

Staff received supervisions and appraisals but although it was planned, this was not consistent and regular for everyone working within the service.  The provider had put a plan in place to ensure these were carried out more consistently in the future.  

The home was clean, spacious and suitable for the people who used the service. People’s bedrooms had been personalised with support from key workers.   

CQC monitors the operation of the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) which applies to care homes. The Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) are part of the Mental Capacity Act 2005. They aim to make sure that people in care homes, hospitals and supported living are looked after in a way that does not inappropriately restrict their freedom. We discussed DoLS with the acting manager and looked at records. We found the provider was following the requirements in the DoLS.   

Staff treated people with dignity and respect and helped to maintain people’s independence by encouraging them to care for themselves where possible.  

We saw that the home had a programme of activities in place for people who used the service. We saw people accessing the community with the support from staff. One person showed us items they had purchased from the local shops which they were very pleased with and another person had been out swimming.  

Care records showed that people’s needs were assessed before they moved into Seaham View and care plans were written in a person centred way. Staff told us that daily diaries and care plans had improved tremendously in the last few months and they were making improvements all the time to ensure activities were planned, meaningful and resourced appropriately.  

The provider had a complaints policy and procedure in place and complaints were fully investigated.

The provider had a robust quality assurance system in place and gathered information about the quality of their service from a variety of sources.

18 September and 1 October 2014

During a routine inspection

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 provide a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

We inspected Seaham View on 18 September and 1 October 2014 The inspection was unannounced. Our last inspection took place on 5 November 2013 and we found the service was meeting all essential standards.

Seaham View is registered to provide accommodation and personal care for up to 12 people. During our visit the home accommodated 12 young adults with learning disabilities and autism.

The home had a registered manager at the time of our inspection. 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 using the service were not able to tell us about their experience of care during our visits but we observed how people were cared for, spoke with other professionals, staff and management.

Staff working in the service described the service as “dangerous, unsafe and neglectful” as they were not properly trained to manage people’s complex needs.

On the days of our inspections we saw people were not well cared for and serious concerns regarding the safety of people using the service were identified. We saw first-hand the inability of staff to manage people’s complex needs, people were not engaged in meaningful activities, the environment did not meet people’s needs and staff demonstrated limited knowledge of caring for people with autism.

5 November 2013

During an inspection looking at part of the service

We visited Seaham View to follow up a previous inspection. In June 2013, we found people were not protected against the risks associated with medicines because the provider had not made appropriate arrangements to manage medicines.

During this inspection we found Seaham View had made progress on implementing their improvement plans. Medicines were safely administered. The provider had put in place arrangements to ensure medicines were kept safely.

27 June and 4 July 2013

During a routine inspection

People living at the home had complex needs and were not able to communicate verbally their views and experiences to us. We were able to observe people's experiences of living in the home and their interactions with each other and the staff. We saw that staff were respectful of people, and had a lot of knowledge of their needs. In particular staff had a good understanding of the communication styles people preferred.

We found people were not protected against the risks associated with medicines because the provider had not made appropriate arrangements to manage medicines.

We spoke with two relatives by phone following the inspection. They both spoke positively about the care provided at Seaham View. One relative told us, "Seaham View is absolutely lovely. My relative has come on leaps and bounds since they moved there. They are like a completely different person. It feels like their home." The other relative told us, "It's great. They really like it there. They (the staff) are doing a good job."

People experienced care, treatment and support that met their needs and protected their rights.

We found the provider had made improvements to the frequency of appraisals and supervision sessions for staff.

Comments and complaints people made were responded to appropriately.

4 December 2012

During a routine inspection

People took part in a range of community-based activities and outings. One person told us 'I like going for walks', another told us 'I go to the pictures (cinema)'

We found that members of staff were very attentive to people's needs. People looked well cared for and at ease with the staff members who were supporting them.

People's needs were assessed and care and treatment was planned and delivered in line with their individual care plan.

People who used the service were protected from the risk of abuse, because the provider had taken reasonable steps to identify the possibility of abuse and prevent abuse from happening.

9 February 2011

During a routine inspection

People spoken with were positive about the staff. One person said, The staff are nice, they treat me well" People said that they "liked living here" and "the staff are nice, they help me to do what I can"..