Archived: The Old Rectory

Updated 14 April 2021

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Care Act 2014.

As part of this inspection we looked at the infection control and prevention measures in place. This was conducted so we can understand the preparedness of the service in preventing or managing an infection outbreak, and to identify good practice we can share with other services.

Inspection team

The inspection was carried out by one inspector.

Service and service type

The Old Rectory is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

The service had a manager registered with the Care Quality Commission. This means that they and the provider are legally responsible for how the service is run and for the quality and safety of the care provided.

Notice of inspection

We gave the service 48 hours’ notice of this inspection to ensure risks were reduced relating to COVID-19.

What we did before the inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We sought feedback from the local authority and professionals who work with the service. We used the information the provider sent us in the provider information return. This is information providers are required to send us with key information about their service, what they do well, and improvements they plan to make. This information helps support our inspections. We requested information regarding the service and began to review this. We used all of this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with two people who used the service and three relatives about their experience of the care provided. We spoke with eight members of staff including the provider, registered manager, head of care, senior care workers, care workers and the head of compliance.

We reviewed a range of records. This included three people’s care records and multiple medication records. We looked at two staff files in relation to recruitment and staff supervision. A variety of records relating to the management of the service, including policies and procedures were reviewed.

After the inspection

We continued to seek clarification from the provider to validate evidence found. We looked at training data and quality assurance records.

Updated 14 April 2021

About the service

The Old Rectory is a residential care home providing personal and nursing care to 17 people aged 65 and over at the time of the inspection. The service can support up to 24 people. The care home is set over two floors with communal lounges and dining areas.

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

There was a lack of clear and consistent quality assurance systems and processes in place, which meant there was gaps in quality monitoring.

Where quality audits had taken place, these identified areas of improvement. However, some action was not taken to address shortfalls in a timely way. For example, there had been delays in ensuring updates to the environment were completed.

There were areas of the environment which required urgent attention and posed a risk to infection control. We discussed this with the provider who submitted an action plan to resolve these concerns.

There were enough staff to meet the needs of people and they knew them well. The provider recruited staff safely. People received their prescribed medicines. Staff understood their responsibilities to keep people safe. Risks associated with people’s care had been identified and mitigated.

People and relatives spoke highly of both the staff and management team. The service worked in partnership with others to promote better outcomes for people.

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 11 December 2018).

Why we inspected

The inspection was prompted in part due to concerns received about medicines and culture. A decision was made for us to inspect and examine those risks. We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from this concern. Please see the Safe section of this full report. However, have found evidence that the provider needs to make improvements regarding governance. Please see the Well-led section of this full report.

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

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