Archived: Laetus Lodge

Updated 16 November 2017

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. This inspection checked 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 was a comprehensive inspection and took place on 18 and 25 October 2017.

The first day of the inspection was unannounced; the provider knew we would return for a second day. Both days of the inspection were carried out by one inspector.

Before the inspection, we reviewed the information we held about the service. This included notifications sent to us by the provider and other information we held on our database about the service. Statutory notifications include information about important events which the provider is required to send us by law.

During the inspection we spoke with three people who used the service. We spoke with the proprietor, manager and three care workers.

We checked records related to the management of the service. These included three care plans, four staff files, training records and audits.

Updated 16 November 2017

Laetus Lodge is a care home providing care for nine people with learning disabilities. It is located in Tooting, South West London and is close to local amenities and good transport links. At the time of the inspection, the home was fully occupied.

At the last inspection, the service was rated Good.

At this inspection we found the service remained Good.

There was a manager at the service who was applying for the post of 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 told us that staff were friendly and they liked living at the home. People led independent lives and were supported by staff to make breakfast, snacks and get involved in doing things for themselves around the home. Some people lived in their own flats.

People are 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. People were able to access and take part in a number of activities in the community, for example going to the gym, gardening and shopping.

People were supported by staff to take their medicines. Medicine charts were completed appropriately and regular audits took place to ensure that people received their medicines in a safe manner. People’s healthcare needs were met by the provider.

Staff recruitment procedures were robust and staff were provided with regular training and supervision. We found there were enough staff on shift to meet people’s needs. Some people needed staff support when going out into the community and they were enough staff to meet their needs.

The provider had recently changed their risk assessments and care plans to make them more detailed and person centred. Risk to people were effectively captured and the steps that staff needed to take to manage and minimise the risk were recorded. Staff were familiar with the risk to people and how they would support them.

The provider recorded both informal and formal complaints and took action to resolve them to the satisfaction of the complainants. Regular meetings were held where people were able to have a say into how they were feeling and their experience in the home.

Staff told us they felt supported and enjoyed working at the home. A number of quality assurance checks and audits took place which the provider used to monitor the quality of service and make improvements. These included monthly checks on the records, including care plans, medicine charts and risk assessments.